Adopt Instant Runoff Voting

Whereas, The Academic Senate for California Community Colleges (ASCCC) currently uses majority voting for officers and representatives, and in each election, each delegate only votes once per ballot;

Whereas, Elections to the Executive Committee at the ASCCC spring plenary sessions often require multiple runoff elections, extending the time that delegates need to remain present on Saturdays of spring plenaries;

Whereas, The ASCCC’s existing elections procedure disqualifies candidates who do not accrue enough votes to be included in the run-off, even though these candidates may have been the second choice of delegates who voted for a different candidate who also did not make the runoff; and

Whereas, Preferential elections procedures which incorporate instant runoff [1] have the potential to significantly expedite the elections process while also ensuring that each delegate has the ability to participate in the election of each officer and representative that the delegate is entitled to vote for;

Resolved, That the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges, in an effort to ensure the faculty voice is represented, amend section I. G of its rules to incorporate instant runoff voting and read as follow:

1. The process by which the election will be conducted shall be distributed in writing prior to the day of the election.
2. Each ballot shall proceed as follows: Tellers shall distribute ballots to those Ddelegates eligible to vote for the specific office being contested.
a. The ballot for each position will include the names of all candidates for the position.
b. The delegate shall indicate a preference for the candidate that the delegate most desires by marking that candidate’s name with the number 1. The delegate shall also indicate a different candidate as a second choice with the number 2, and so on for all candidates as the delegate desires, in the order that the delegate prefers.
c. a. The delegate shall mark the ballot, sign it, seal it, and return it to the tellers.
d. b. The tellers shall retire to another a separate room and shall compare the signatures on each ballot against the signatures on the list of Ddelegates eligible to vote, setting aside any ballots not submitted by a Ddelegate eligible to vote. Any ballots which do not adhere to the rules or the published process shall be disqualified. Then, aAll ballots shall then be counted.
e. If any candidate receives a majority (greater than 50%) of number 1 votes, that candidate will be declared the winner. If none of the candidates for a position receives a majority of number 1 votes from the delegates present and voting, the candidate with the fewest number 1 votes will be removed from consideration. The number 2 vote on the ballots of those delegates who gave preference to the candidate no longer under consideration will then be applied. This iterative process will be applied from the ballots until one of the candidates reaches a majority.
f. If the final two candidates are tied as the result of preferential balloting, the candidate from the shared majority to whom the delegates bestowed the most number 1 votes will be declared the winner. Iteratively, in the event that both of the candidates with the shared majority receive the same amount of number 1 votes, the candidate with the highest amount of number 2 votes will be the winner, and so on.
g. c. The specific process by which the election will be conducted, including the grounds and process for appeal of specific ballot results, shall be distributed in writing prior to the day of the election.
3. To be elected, a candidate must receive a vote from a majority of those delegates present and voting. A majority is greater than 50%.
4. In the event no candidate for a position receives a majority through the process in I.G.2.f, a run-off will be conducted but will be limited to the top two candidates with the largest number of votes, including all ties.
5. The order of the election shall be as follows: President, Vice-president, Secretary, Treasurer, Area Representatives, North Representative, South Representative, and At-Large Representative.
6. Any candidate may observe or select someone to observe the counting of votes for the ballot or ballots on which the candidate’s name appears.
7. A candidate for election may not chair the Elections Committee or participate in the distribution, collection, or tallying of votes.
8. If a candidate runs unopposed, the candidate may be elected by acclamation. The motion to be elected by acclamation must be moved and seconded by Ddelegates from the floor and must be approved by the body.
9. Ballots shall be kept in the Senate archives until the next election.