ARTICLE III
ELECTIONS
SECTION
1. ORDER OF SUCCESSION -For the purpose of electing
a President of the Maryland, Delaware and District of
Columbia Elks Association the following Districts are established:
District
I - Grand Lodge West District
District
II - Grand Lodge South-West District District III -
Grand Lodge South-East District District
IV - Grand Lodge North-Central District District
V - Grand Lodge North-East District
The
succession shall be in order listed and shall thereafter
follow this rotation with the President being
from the South-West District in 1983-84. In the event of any
newly created, or change in the Grand Lodge Districts, the
foregoing order of succession shall be amended and/or
supplemented accordingly. Any District shall have the right
to decline their turn.
SECTION
2. The election of the President-Elect of the
Association shall be at the Annual April Meeting of the
Association. When entitled by District to be elected in
accordance with the order of succession, nominations
shall be made only when endorsed by the members' Lodge
in regular
session, a resolution signed by the Exalted Ruler and Secretary of that Lodge and filed with the
Association Secretary at least thirty (30) days prior to
the election. No lodge shall endorse or propose more than one
candidate for any given office.
(a)
Although
the order of succession provides that the nominees
shall be selected only from that District, all Delegates of the State Association shall be
entitled to vote for the President-Elect at the state-wide
elections. The President-Elect will then become President,
following the order of succession set forth in Article III,
Section 1.
(b)
If
more than three (3) names are placed in nomination for the
office of President-Elect, then the Vice-President of
that District
shall call a caucus of the Delegates of the District to determine
the three (3) candidates receiving the most votes whose
names will be placed in nomination for that office at the April Meeting of the Association (12/98)
SECTION
3. The Vice President or Past State President designated
by the President shall conduct a meeting in each District, during the month of April, for the
purpose of electing a Vice President, a Trustee and a Camp
Barrett Executive Committee member to represent that
District. (6/99) The officer conducting the meeting shall
notify each member Lodge of that District of the time and
place that the meeting will be held. Said notice shall be made
no later than two weeks prior to the meeting. Upon the
completion of said election, the officer conducting the meeting
shall notify the Secretary of the Association of the name,
address, of elected.
SECTION
4. All officers except Sergeant-at-Arms, Inner-Guard,
Chaplain, Tiler, Treasurer and Secretary shall be elected or ratified at the Annual Convention Meeting of the Association
and shall hold office for one year, which will be the
fiscal year of the Association or until their successors
are duly elected and installed. An election for Treasurer and Secretary shall
be held at the April Meeting of the
Association.
All elected Trustees shall hold office for two years.
The Sergeant-at-Arms, Inner Guard, Chaplain and Tiler shall
be appointed by the President. (1/95)
SECTION
5. VACANCY IN OFFICE, HOW FILLED - In the event of
any vacancy except the office of President, Secretary or
Treasurer,
the President shall order an election, in accordance with these By-Laws, to fill the
vacancy. If another vacancy is caused by the election of any
elective officer to fill such a vacancy, it shall be filled at the same
session, and nominations shall be made and the election held
at the same session.
(6/99)
(a)
Should the vacancy be that of President,
Secretary or Treasurer of the Association the Advisory
Committee shall appoint a successor from the same district in
which it occurs, who shall serve until the next State election.
The District requirement shall not apply to the Secretary or
Treasurer. (6/99)
(b)
In the event an officer is incapacitated or
negligent in his/her duties, and non-performance is proven,
it shall be the duty of the Advisory Committee to bring
such notice to the attention of the Association and to take such
action as may be deemed necessary. (6/99)
SECTION
6. OFFICER QUALIFICATIONS - Any candidate for any office in this Association, except Treasurer or
Chaplain, shall have
completed a term as an Exalted Ruler of a member Lodge of this Association. Any candidate must have met these
qualifications by the date of the Annual Convention Meeting.
ARTICLE IV >
GRAND
LODGE