In light of the contentious nature of the last Board of Directors election, the Board is working hard to ensure a fair process.

However, the most important aspect of any election is the people who cast their votes. In the last election only about 15% of almost 1,700 UMCA members voted. That means that your vote counts more than you think. Someone who talks 100 more members into voting could change the outcome.

The Voter Turnout Committee, comprised of Terri Gooch, Peter Leiss, Emily O'Brien and chaired by Board member Merry Vander Linden, was formed to address the reasons why most members don't vote and to find ways to increase participation in the upcoming Board election. We started by asking ourselves why some people vote in elections and why others don't bother. Generally, we vote because we feel that we have an interest in the outcome; because we think that candidates' positions are relevant to our needs; because we understand that it's our civic duty or that it's important to participate if we care about the organization. We don't bother to vote if we don't care about the result; because we don't think the outcome matters; because it's too much trouble and we don't get around to it; because we don't feel that we know enough about the candidates to make a responsible decision; because we feel that one vote out of so many makes no difference.

The UMCA is not a huge organization, and your vote makes a much bigger difference in the Board election than it does when you vote for your state's governor. If you have ideas for new projects or programs, if there are things you would like to change or if you just don't feel you know enough about the candidates and their visions for the UMCA, take some time to get to know those individuals. Read their lengthy statements on the website, e-mail them questions, inquire about their qualifications and engage in constructive dialog. Then when the time comes, express your opinion with a ballot.

After reviewing why members don't vote, the Voter Turnout Committee makes the following recommendations for increasing member participation in upcoming elections:

1. Investigate the feasibility of online/electronic voting. One way this might be done is to assign a unique numerical code to each member's mailing label on the magazine. This code then becomes the member's electronic signature. Ensure that there are safeguards in place to prevent double voting, i.e. an electronic vote and a paper vote.
2. Utilize the magazine and the website to educate members as to the importance of their vote and remind members to check their voting registration status, with clear instructions for how to register and plenty of lead time for signed forms to be submitted. Every UMCA member in good standing is eligible to vote, but as before, validation procedure requires that members have a signed membership form on file with the UMCA for their vote to be counted.
3. Add color banners in prominent places in the November-December and January-February issues of UltraCycling to remind members about the election.
4. Utilize the website to provide members with as much information as possible. Make candidates' statements of their goals and qualifications as well as their contact information readily accessible online in addition to the summary statements published in UltraCycling, but without the space limitations that a print magazine necessitates.
5. Post friendly reminders on the Google list as election deadlines approach.
6. Continue to provide the ballot in the magazine for those who prefer not to vote electronically.
7. Provide an incentive to vote, with each voter becoming eligible for a prize drawing. Some ideas for incentives are comp annual UMCA memberships, comp annual registration in the UltraCup and the Year-Rounder, signed memorabilia from ultracycling luminaries, signed copies of books published by UMCA members, leftover swag from event organizers, or a UMCA jersey.

The Executive Committee of the Board reviewed and supports the recommendations and they will be reviewed by the Committee on Board Elections. Electronic voting is an excellent suggestion; there is not time to implement it for the 2008 election; however, this will be researched for the next election.

Vote for your UMCA Leaders!
By Joe Jamison

The voter turnout in our elections has been terribly disappointing in the past. In the last election approximately 250 votes were cast out of 1500 members, and that turnout was the best in the history of this non-profit organization. The UMCA has been repeatedly criticized for that, and rightly so.

In order to dramatically improve voter turnout, I formed a Committee to Improve Voter Turnout under the leadership of Merry Vander Linden. Showing lots initiative and energy, this committee produced a good set of recommendations. By using many of the recommendations from the Voter Turnout Committee we want to see a minimum of 500 votes cast in the next election.

Please take this as a personal challenge to understand the issues, to learn about the candidates, to make up your mind, and above all else to vote.