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Executive Committee Elections 2020-21


ECPR General Conference

Executive Committee Elections 2020-21

The current Executive Committee (EC) will complete its three-year term of office on 30 April 2021 with six of the 12 members stepping down after serving six years; the election process for the 2021–24 EC will run from 15 October 2020.

The members of the EC who will continue to serve on the 2021–24 board are:

  • Giliberto Capano Bologna University
  • David Farrell University College Dublin
  • Petra Meier University of Antwerp
  • Thomas Saalfeld University of Bamberg
  • Sabine Saurugger Sciences Po Grenoble
  • Hana Kubátová Charles University

The Chair of the Executive Committee for the 2021–24 period will be David Farrell. 

Nominations for the remaining six positions on the EC are invited between 15 October and 15 November 2020 and are open to all individuals from Full Member institutions. To find out more about the role, electoral process and how to nominate yourself please review the sections below. Potential candidates should familiarise themselves with both the process and the role before submitting a nomination.

The ECPR’s Trustees, herein referred to as the Executive Committee (EC), is a 12-member board that has overarching responsibility for the long-term strategic development of the ECPR. As a charitable incorporated organisation (CIO), the Executive Committee carries with it certain eligibility criteria, obligations and responsibilities. To find out more, please see the UK Government website.

Members of the EC are highly respected professionals within the discipline, eager to contribute their ideas, time and energy to developing European political science. The EC is not an honorary post. It comes with work, responsibility and travel. But it is also an important distinction to be part of Europe’s premier political science organisation with all the internationalism, professionalism and dynamism the ECPR has come to stand for.

Service on the EC means taking on responsibility for one or more of the ECPR’s different areas of work. It is an opportunity to put your mark on how these activities are run and how they can be improved, working closely with both the ECPR’s Director, Tanja Munro, as well as staff in related departments located at the Head Office in Colchester. The work of the EC is divided into a number of portfolios via Subcommittees (for example Finance, Publications, Events, Training) each with certain delegated responsibilities from the EC. The new Chair allocates the portfolios after discussions with all members. Plenary meetings of the EC generally take place twice a year – in the spring at Harbour House and at the General Conference in or around September. Subcommittee meetings take place throughout the year as workload demands and ahead of each plenary EC meeting, normally using online meeting facilities.

Executive Committee members are elected for six-year terms, and these are staggered, with elections occurring every three years when half of the Committee is replaced. The Chair of the Executive Committee is elected by the EC itself every three years from those members who have served for three years and therefore have the experience working for the ECPR to take on the job. The Chair of the Executive Committee for the 2021–24 period will be David Farrell, who was elected as ‘Chair-designate’ at the meeting of the EC in September 2020. He is working with the current Chair, Kris Deschouwer, on the process of transition between them which will occur at Harbour House in March 2021, with the new Executive Committee officially taking office on 1 May 2021.

Throughout its history, the ECPR has strived to maintain a regional balance within its Executive Committee, representative of its membership; candidates from all Full Member institutions are therefore encouraged to run. Candidates are also encouraged from all thematic sub-fields of the discipline. 

The ECPR is committed to improving the representation of women throughout all its activities and events and at its highest levels of governance. This year, in line with the ECPR’s Gender Equality Plan, two parallel elections will run – one for female candidates and one for male candidates. This will elect three women and three men to the EC and therefore achieve for the first time, gender parity on the board.

Female candidates are therefore strongly encouraged to nominate themselves for the Executive Committee.

The procedure for electing members of the ECPR Executive Committee will involve three successive stages: nominations, endorsements and final voting. Each stage is organised electronically via the MyECPR area on the website. Those wishing to take part, therefore, must have a MyECPR account – this takes only a few minutes to set up here.

Nominations
15 October – 15 November 2020

Any individual from any Full ECPR Member institution who meets the eligibility criteria can nominate themselves to stand for election to the Executive Committee. This stage of the process opens on the 15 October and closes on the 15 November 2020.

Nominations must come from the candidates themselves. When posting his or her name, the nominee may add a portrait photo and a statement of up to 500 words, covering basic biographical information, and their motivation for standing for election. Nominees shall be listed in the order in which they posted their nomination on the website.

Endorsements
1 December 2020 – 1 January 2021

At this stage, Official Representatives (ORs) from Full Member institutions are invited to endorse up to three candidates from the list of nominees; this period runs between 1 December 2020 and 1 January 2021. All endorsements are visible to all ORs and to those candidates who are not themselves also ORs. 

For inclusion on the final ballot, a nominee must:

  • Receive at least five endorsements;
  • Have endorsements from Official Representatives of Full Member institutions in at least two countries; and
  • Have endorsements from Official Representatives of Full Member institutions of both sexes.
Ballot
15 January – 15 February 2021

Those receiving sufficient endorsements will go through to the final ballot where Official Representatives from Full ECPR Member institutions will be invited to vote in both elections. This process will open on the 15 January and close on the 15 February 2021. The votes are counted and final seats allocated based on the Single Transferable Vote System (Scottish variant).

Results

The results will be announced on the ECPR website once they have been certified by the Returning Officer and all candidates informed. The new EC will have its first meeting at Harbour House in Colchester in March 2021.

Only individuals from Full ECPR Member institutions may nominate themselves for the Executive Committee. Please see the current membership list to check your university’s status. Associate Members can apply to upgrade to Full Member status, which will then afford them full voting and standing rights; please contact us for more information about this option. Since members of the Executive Committee are the trustees of the ECPR, candidates must also meet eligibility criteria as set by the UK Government.

Before you nominate yourself, please ensure you are familiar with both the full requirements of the role and the guidelines for trustees of UK charities. When you nominate yourself you must confirm you meet the following eligibility criteria:

  • You must hold a PhD (and to be a trustee of a charitable incorporated organisation (CIO) be at least 16 years old)
  • You must not be bankrupt (undischarged) or have an individual voluntary arrangement (IVA) in place
  • You must not have an unspent conviction for certain offences (including any that involve dishonesty or deception)
  • You must not be listed on the sex offenders’ register
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