FEBRUary 2009 issue
APEGGA RE-ENergizes Election Process
BY GEORGE LEE
The PEGG
APEGGA is ramping up its pre-election promotional campaign and improving the voting process in response to last year’s low voter turnout. After seeking input from 46 members in six focus groups, a task force of Council instructed staff to make a number of mechanical and motivational improvements to the 2009 election.
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Hardcopy coverage becomes more thorough, and readers will notice the difference in this issue of The PEGG. Electronic coverage and promotion are also improving, and voting is becoming more user-friendly.
Among the improvements are
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A pullout second section in this edition of The PEGG so voters can read biographies on paper when they go online to vote, rather than click through other windows on the screen. See our Pre-Election Special, this edition.
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An audio-video presentation of a forum featuring the three candidates for President-Elect and Vice-President. Visit www.apegga.org to watch the forum and find out what potential APEGGA presidents have to say about Association issues.
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More and more focused e-mailings — readable on mobile devices. These will be distributed before and during the election.
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A thermometer graphic updated daily on the website home page, measuring voter participation throughout the election.
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Easier access to the voting site through the APEGGA home page.
For the second year in a row, the preferred method of voting is online. Information letters on electronic voting are being mailed to eligible voters in the last week of February, containing passwords and other instructions.
Once again, those members who want to vote non-electronically must contact APEGGA to receive their ballots. Also, if you do not receive a letter in early March at the latest, contact APEGGA.
Voting begins at 9 a.m. MST on Monday, March 2, and continues until 12 noon MDT on Sunday, April 5.
Last year, APEGGA had hoped online voting would improve turnout. Instead, the trend towards less member voting continued, with under 10 per cent of eligible voters marking ballots, electronic or otherwise.
Not long ago, APEGGA elections typically attracted 19 or 20 per cent of eligible voters, said Deputy Registrar Al Schuld, P.Eng. “We’re not alone in this. It’s the trend in other Associations and in the general public,” he said.
Older members tend to be more conscientious about voting than new, younger voters are, Mr. Schuld explained. Also, voters of every stripe are experiencing what’s been called “voter fatigue” because of the number of other elections that have taken place in recent years.
“But none of that excuses us from trying to engage more members in the voting process,” said Mr. Schuld. “We thought the novelty and ease of electronic voting would boost interest in the election and in voting, but now we see we need to do more. That’s what these improvements are all about.”
MORE INFO
Presidential Forum & Election Fact Sheet
Report of the Nominating Committee
Pre-Election Special
CONTACT
Deputy Registrar Al Schuld, P.Eng.
aschuld@apegga.org
Phone 1-800-661-7020
(toll free in North America)
Or 780-426-3990 (Edmonton)