Announcing Elections for National Officers & Delegates!

NWU’s National Elections are upon us! As a democratic Union, our members hold the highest decision-making power. Elections are the way in which our power is institutionalized, allowing members to elect the people who represent them.

You should have recently received the Election Committee’s official call for nominations for all national officer and chapter delegate elections (if not, check your spam folder!). Every member in good standing for the past 12 months can self-nominate for any of the 11 national positions or for chapter delegate.

Nominations will open on Monday, April 15 and close on Friday, May 3, 2024, at 5pm Pacific Time.

All contested elections will be handled by E-Ballot, and will run from Friday May 31, 2024 to Saturday, June 15, 2024 at 5pm Pacific Time. E-Ballot will send out the ballots with the candidates’ ballot statements, collect and count the ballots, and announce the winners.

Unlike in previous years, this election is for national officers, chapter delegates, and chapter alternate delegates only. Chapter and division officers are elected separately: Please refer to Guidance for Chapter and Division Elections, below.

You may also refer here to the amended bylaws for the full text of changes to elections & roles, with the amended text in bold.

Election Statement

All candidates for any office must submit a statement of no more than 300 words with your nomination. The statement must include your name, address, chapter and/or division membership, and email address, which will not be counted towards your 300 words. The bylaws recommend the statement include information on the following:

1. any previous Union leadership roles the candidate has held; 
2. any relevant organizing experience and/or training the candidate would like to share;
3. the candidate’s perspective on the organizing strategies currently in use by our Union; and/or 
4. the candidate’s intended approach to fulfilling the responsibilities associated with the role in question (especially as regards financial or auditing experience, in the case of Treasurer and Trustee roles).

Any statement longer than 300 words will be cut off at the 300-word mark. Please send all election statements to electioncommittee@nwu.org.

Nomination Signatures

Candidates for National Officer positions are required to submit two (2) signatures from fellow members in good standing. The signatures may be digital signatures, including e-mailed statements of support sent to electioncommittee@nwu.org. 

Chapter Delegates and Alternate Delegates may be self-nominated. There is no requirement to submit signatures.

National Officers

The national officer elections include President, Treasurer, Recording Secretary, 1st VP, 2nd VP, three (3) Officers-at-Large, and three (3) Trustees. These are two (2) year terms. Candidates for national office must be members-in-good-standing for the past 12 months.

Delegate Elections

Chapters may elect Delegates and Alternate Delegates to the Delegate Assembly (see table below for chapter allotment). Candidates must be members in good standing. Delegates will serve for two (2) years, starting with the 2024 Delegate Assembly.

Additional officers may vote at the Delegate Assembly: The 11 National Officers are Delegates. One Chair from each Chapter and Division may serve as Delegate “ex-officio”. Committee Chairs may run for Delegate as member of a geographic Chapter. According to our bylaws, the delegate breakdown is as follows:

At-Large: 272 members – 6 delegates

Boston: 98 members – 4 delegates

Chicago: 35 members – 3 delegates

DC: 83 members – 4 delegates

Michigan: 45 members – 3 delegates

NorCal: 68 members – 3 delegates

New York: 259 members – 6 delegates

Oregon: 28 members – 3 delegates

Philadelphia: 35 members – 3 delegates

Pittsburgh: 6 members – 3 delegates

Pacific NW: 25 members – 3 delegates

SoCal: 74 members – 3 delegates

Tucson: 21 members – 3 delegates

Total: 1,049 members – 47 delegates

Guidance for Chapter and Division Elections

The 2024 NWU National Elections will not include election of Chapter or Division Officers. It is recommended that Chapters and Divisions conduct regular elections of Unit Officers. The NWU Election Committee will assist units in holding elections, certifying, or appealing election results upon request.

Chapter or Division Officers must be members in good standing of the National Writers Union. The assembly of unit Officers is called the Steering Committee, which is required to meet at least once every two months. The Chapter or Division itself is required to meet at least once every three months.

Each Chapter and Division must elect a Treasurer, as well as either one Chair or two (2) Co-Chairs. A unit may, but is not required to, elect up to nine (9) Steering Committee members.

One Chair from each Chapter and Division shall be entitled to serve as a “Delegate ex-officio” at the Delegate Assembly. Units that have two Co-Chairs may designate which shall serve as Delegate ex-officio.

Chapters shall also elect one or more Alternate Delegates to the Delegate Assembly to replace any Delegate unable to serve. The election is at the same time as the election of Delegates. The number of Alternates may be less than but not more than the number of regular Delegates.

Questions and Comments

If you have any questions, please contact us at electioncommittee@nwu.org .

In Solidarity,
The Election Committee
David Hill
Ryan Kelly
Johnathan McClure
Elena Novak
Josh Tucker