During Northern Electric Cooperative’s 2023 Annual Meeting (Tuesday, September 19, 2023) members will elect Directors for Districts 4, 6, and 7.
Incumbent directors Josh Larson, Columbia (Dist. 4), Kirk Schaunaman, Aberdeen (Dist. 6), and William (B.J.) Hansen, Turton (Dist. 7) are all eligible to run again and are up for re-election.
Northern Electric Cooperative uses a petition process to nominate directors. A petition must be circulated for each candidate. Candidates must be cooperative members and reside in the district they wish to represent. A designated representative of an entity may seek election. The representative must reside within the district in which they would represent. Each petition must be signed by at least ten (10) cooperative members residing in that candidate’s specific district.
Only one party of a joint membership may sign a petition; but not both.
Petitions are available at the Northern Electric offices in Bath and Redfield. Director petitions must be submitted not more than one hundred-twenty (120) nor less than forty-five (45) days before the Annual Meeting to have names placed on the official ballot and the Notice of the Meeting.
Petitions must be filed at a Northern Electric Cooperative office by close of business (4:30 p.m.) Friday, August 4, 2023. No petitions filed after August 4, 2023 shall be considered valid. Nominations are not permitted from the floor during the meeting.
Members may only sign ONE nominating petition for a director candidate from their district of record.
For a complete copy of the Northern Electric Cooperative Bylaws contact Northern Electric at 605-225-0310 or stop by one of the offices in Bath or Redfield. The bylaws are also available online at www.northernelectric.coop/cooperative-bylaws.
Director Nomination And Election Process
Northern Electric Cooperative Bylaws Article IV Section 6
Section 6. Nomination of Directors. Any ten (10) or more members including a Designated Representative of an entity, in such District may file or sign a nominating petition, in the form provided by the Cooperative, with the Secretary placing in nomination any qualified member from such District. Each signatory shall place the date of signing and the member’s address on said petition. No member may sign a petition to nominate more than one candidate, and to do so shall invalidate the member’s signature on the petition signed on the latest date.
This procedure shall be followed in each director district in which the director term shall expire. Upon receipt of such petition and having found the same to be in order, the Secretary shall post such nomination in the principal office of the Cooperative. Candidates so nominated shall be identified in the Notice of the Meeting and shall also be named on the official ballot.
Such Petition for Nomination shall be filed with the Cooperative not more than one hundred-twenty (120) nor less than forty-five (45) days before the membership meeting. The order in which the nominees shall appear on the printed ballot shall be determined by lot under the supervision of the Secretary. If any nominee should refuse to become a candidate or is not qualified, in accordance with the requirements of these Bylaws, the Secretary of the Cooperative is authorized and directed to remove the name or names from the list of posted nominees and/or from the ballot.
The Secretary shall be responsible for mailing with the notice of the annual meeting, or separately, but at least ten (10) days before the date of the meeting, a statement of the number of directors to be elected and the names and addresses of the candidates nominated. No nominations shall be permitted from the floor. Each member of the Cooperative present at the meeting shall be entitled to vote for one candidate from their specific district from which a director is to be elected. Upon establishment of a quorum the annual member meeting shall be deemed convened. Voting may occur in accordance with the procedure established by the Board. The candidate from each district receiving the highest number of votes at the meeting shall be considered elected as a director.
Director Qualifications
Northern Electric Cooperative Bylaws
Article IV Section 4
No person shall be eligible to become or remain a director who:
1. Is an employee of the Cooperative.
2. Is not a member and bona fide resident of the service area served by the Cooperative located within the particular District
provided that if the member is an entity other than a natural person then such person must be the Designated Representative
of the entity, and such Designated Representative must reside within the district they represent.
3. Is in any way employed by or financially interested in a competing enterprise or business selling electric energy or supplies to
the Cooperative or a business primarily engaged in selling electrical or plumbing appliances, fixtures or supplies to the
members of the Cooperative.
4. Has been previously removed as a Director in accordance with the procedures provided for removal in these Bylaws.
5. Has failed to attend at least 2/3 of all regular board meetings during any consecutive twelve (12) month period.
6. Has been employed by the Cooperative in the past five (5) years.
7. Has pled guilty or has been convicted of: a felony, any crime involving dishonesty, or any crime involving moral turpitude.
8. Does not have the capacity to enter into legally binding contracts.