Election Process

Elections are a critical part of the democratic process and are one way in which members have a voice in the running of their organization. Members have an opportunity to vote for candidates of a contested Board of Directors' office and decide on language changes to the Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws.

2025 Election Open Positions

  • Second Vice-President - Moves in succession through the national officer positions (second vice-president, first vice-president, president-elect, president, and immediate-past president)
  • Regional Vice-President 4 - Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wisconsin
  • Regional Vice-President 6 - Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, and Ohio
  • Regional Vice-President 9 - Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, and Vermont

Special Appointment

The NEHA Board of Directors will be appointing a new member to the Board to fill the vacancy of Region 3 Vice-President. This appointment will serve the remainder of the 2024 - 2027 term. Region 3 represents Colorado, Montana, Utah, Wyoming, and members residing outside of the U.S. (except members of the U.S. uniformed services). Learn more.

Commitments

  • Board of Directors officers serve for five years and move in succession from second vice-president to first vice-president to president-elect to president and finally, immediate past-president.
  • Regional vice-presidents positions serve for three years.
  • The official board year begins, and incoming board members take office at the conclusion of the Annual Educational Conference (AEC).
  • Quarterly board meetings are held virtually or in person. In person meetings usually occur twice a year. Note that our president can call for a special board meeting at any time, which would be held virtually.
  • Committee participation, depending on board position and willingness to volunteer. Board members participate on an average of two committees.
  • The annual hourly commitment of board members varies depending on position, region served, and committees.

Requirements

Per our Articles of Incorporation, Article VI - Officers and Directors, Section 2, only Professional and Life members shall be eligible for election as Officers or Directors of the Association. An affiliate officer or other voting affiliate board member cannot serve as a member of the NEHA Board of Directors. Should an affiliate officer or other voting affiliate board member be elected to the Board, they must resign their affiliate position before assuming their new NEHA position. Conversely, if a NEHA Director is elected an affiliate officer or other voting affiliate board member, that Director must resign from the NEHA Board before assuming the position as an affiliate officer or other voting affiliate board member.

Voting Eligibility

Professional and lifetime members are the two membership classes with voting privileges. To vote, an individual must be a member by February 15.

Application & Election Timeline

AEC

Candidates may make a short speech (less than 2 minutes) announcing their candidacy during the Town Hall, if desired.

October 1 - December 1 (or next business day)

Candidate application period (year preceding AEC).

March 1 - 31 (or next business day)

Electronic voting invitations sent to voting members.

April 1 (or next business day)

Election results are sent to the executive director and board president. The president notifies candidates of results via phone. Election results are published on NEHA channels. Board Liaison begins the onboarding process for new members.

Application Process

Second Vice-President

This position is required to be a professional or life NEHA member with at least 3 years of consecutive membership. Second vice-presidents are members of the Board of Directors.

During the application period, an online application will be linked here and must be completed by each candidate. The application includes:

  • Personal, professional, and educational details
  • Uploaded copy of resume
  • Completed member signature form
  • Uploaded high-resolution (300 dpi) headshot with a solid background
  • Biography - 800 words maximum
    • Headshots and profiles will be used for publication in the March issue of the Journal of Environmental Health and other NEHA communication platforms.

Second Vice-President Candidate Application

Regional Vice-President

This position is required to be a professional or life NEHA member with at least 3 years of consecutive membership. Regional vice-presidents are members of the Board of Directors and Affiliate Council of NEHA. They represent the members in their region.

During the application period, an online application will be linked here and must be completed by each candidate. The application includes:

  • Personal, professional, and educational details
  • Uploaded copy of resume
  • Completed member signature form
  • Uploaded high-resolution (300 dpi) headshot with a solid background
  • Biography - 400 words maximum
    • Headshots and profiles will be used for publication in the March issue of the Journal of Environmental Health and other NEHA communication platforms.

Regional Vice-President Candidate Application

Contested Positions

Ballots will be used if the Board of Directors recommends Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws revisions to the membership or if there are contested elections. No ballots will be used for elections in which there is only one candidate. Electronic ballots are activated on March 1 (or the next business day) and reactivated on March 31 (or next business day) and tallied as votes are cast.

In the extremely rare event of a tie for a particular office, the Board of Directors will use the following three hierarchical steps:

  1. Re-ballot the relevant membership. The re-balloting would include only voting members who were eligible for the initial election and would occur within two weeks of declaring a tie in that election. In the event of another tie for that office, the board would continue with step 2.
  2. At a special Board of Directors meeting, designated by the Board President, each candidate would make a short presentation on how they will best represent the membership on the Board of Directors. The presentation would be done electronically via a web meeting, if necessary. Any current board member who was directly involved in the tied election will recuse themself from the voting process. All eligible Board of Directors will vote, by secret ballot, to select the new Officer or Regional Vice-President. The Board President will cast a vote as a member of the board and not to break any tie vote. The Board Officers will vote, by secret ballot, to select the new Regional Vice-President or Officer. In the event of a tie vote (due to any abstentions and/or recusals), the board would proceed to step 3.
  3. The Board President will decide on an appropriate method for resolving the tie, including direct appointment to the board, within the prerogative of the President.

Election Impartiality Requirements

To ensure elections are impartial, each candidate must refrain from:

  • Contacting NEHA staff for election-related questions. All questions should be directed to the Nominations Chair.
  • Requesting support from NEHA staff.
  • Requesting membership contact information from NEHA staff.
  • Using the NEHA logo whatsoever as related to the election campaign.
  • Requesting or submitting journal or web page advertising or links to NEHA staff.
  • Using a NEHA mailing list or email addresses for the purposes of campaigning.

Contacts

  • Tom Butts, Immediate Past-President serves as Nominations Chair and is the contact for election questions.
  • Board Liaison acts as voting administrator.
  • Sales Manager can be contacted if you want to run paid advertising for your candidacy in EH in Focus.

Election Guidance