# Helping Give Away Psychological Science/Standard Operating Procedures/Chapter Elections

HGAPS is finding new ways to make psychological science conferences more accessible!
Here are examples from APA 2022 and the JCCAP Future Directions Forum. Coming soon... ABCT! ~ More at HGAPS.org ~

# Chapter Executive Team Elections

Each year in the spring there is an election for the executive officer positions to fill the executive board. Elections are decided by a majority vote of the members of the club. These are typically conducted in March or April. The Executive roles that are included in elections are President, Treasurer, Secretary, and Social Media.

## Election Guidelines

* Secretary, Social Media Chair, President, and Treasurer are up for election each voting cycle, but most positions can be held for multiple terms if re-elected (except for president)
* Elections take place before the end of the spring semester (typically in March)
* Students that choose to study abroad or plan to graduate early but still want to serve on the Executive Board of HGAPS in the roles of Secretary, Treasurer, or Social Media Chair must have a running mate that will assume their role when they can no longer fulfill their duties
* Specific executive team meetings should be designated as open to all HGAPS members during the spring semester, and candidates are encouraged to attend at least 2 open executive meetings
* The new Executive Board assumes their roles at the start of the next academic year but will begin to attend executive meetings as requested.
In order to run for a position:
* Candidates must have attended 70% of meetings since becoming a member to be eligible to run for an executive position
* All candidates must fill out and submit election blurbs prior to election day
** Election blurb template

## Election Day Procedures

* Candidates must give a speech
* The vote is collected using a qualtrics survey managed by the president (soon to be past president)
* 70% of the chapter must vote

### Tie Breaking Procedures for Executive Board Elections

* If there is a tie between members running for executive positions -- with votes consisting of the entire member body as well as the executive board -- the first tie breaker will be cleared via a vote within the executive board. If an executive member is a part of the position election, they must recuse themselves from the vote.

## Presidential Line of Succession

* If the President abdicates or is impeached, the past-president will take over
* The presidency is a two year commitment. During the 1st year, one acts as President, during the 2nd year, past-president
** Should this person still be a part of the HGAPS chapter after their past-presidency, they are free to hold another executive position
** If there is a vacancy in the past-president position due to a president graduating or no longer wanting to be involved, the former past-president must hold that position, if available; if not, the executive board decides how to proceed with guidance from the advisor and the national board. The position would likely be filled by any previous executive board member.

## Quorum

For any meeting that requires a vote of the HGAPS club membership, quorum is defined as 70%. Quorum can also be met over Qualtrics or other electronic polling. If quorum is not met, then voting must be rescheduled or extended.

## Impeachment and Abdication

Members of the Executive Board are eligible for impeachment if they abuse their power in any way deemed inappropriate, including:
* Racist, sexist or otherwise inappropriate behavior, actions, or hazing
* Inadequate attendance of less than 50% of executive meetings or less than 70% of general body meetings
* Financial malfeasance
* Otherwise neglecting stated duties
Impeachment will result in a majority vote of the Executive Board to determine what disciplinary action will be taken, resulting in membership termination or probation. The Executive Board has the right to appoint any vacant position during the course of the academic year if a member of the Executive Board is impeached or resigns.