OpenID Foundation Election Procedures FAQ
Don Thibeau – Executive Director
Table of Contents
For the purposes of the election this year, there will likely be 7 confirmed sustaining members: Google, Microsoft, PayPal, Ping Identity, Symantec, Yahoo!, and Facebook (other member companies are considering their status). Thus, we will likely be electing five community members to the Board of Directors (the final determination of the number of sustaining directors and community directors to be slated will be made on or before the voting is opened on December 1). The four candidates receiving the most votes will be elected to 2-year terms. One will be elected to a 1-year term. Last year three community board members were elected to 2-year terms and so are not standing for election: Brian Kissel, Marc Frons, and Allen Tom. Other current community board members may seek re-election. They are Nat Sakimura, Chris Messina, David Recordon, Joseph Smarr, Daniel Jacobson, John Bradley, Robert Harles and Dick Hardt.
Voters may cast up to as many votes as there are positions to fill. For the upcoming election this number is anticipated to be 5. At most one vote may be cast per candidate. Ballots casting more than the eligible number of votes are invalid and will be discarded.
Assuming the number of sustaining members remains at 7, the five candidates receiving the most votes will have been elected.
A second runoff election will be held in the event of a tie that would affect the set of elected directors. If the runoff results in a second tie, the tie will be broken by a coin toss by the elections committee chair that is observed by at least two board members who are not standing for election in the present election.
The four candidates receiving the most votes will be elected to 2-year terms. One will be elected to a 1-year term.
OpenID members with valid memberships are eligible to vote.
Individuals who are valid individual foundation members at the time of the election are eligible to run, provided that term limits do not apply to them for that election. For clarity, individuals employed by corporate foundation members may run, including those employed by corporate board members, they must nonetheless be paid individual foundation members to run for community board seats.
Board participation requires a substantial ongoing investment of time and energy. It is a volunteer effort that should not be undertaken lightly. Should you be elected, expect to be called upon to serve both on the board and on its committees where the work of the foundation is conducted. You should be committed to OpenID and advancing digital identity and be a person who works well with others.
The OIDF’s Executive Committee has suggested a few questions candidates may want to publically address in their candidate statements:
1. What is you view of the mission of the OpenID Foundation?
2. What are the key opportunities you see for the OpenID Foundation in 2011?
3. How will you demonstrate your commitment to the work of the foundation in terms of resources, focus and leadership?
4. What would you like to see accomplished over the next year, and how do you personally plan to make these things happen?
5. What resources can you bring to the foundation to help the foundation attain its goals?
6. What current or past experiences, skills, or interests will inform your contributions and views?
Directors serve for a maximum of four consecutive elected terms. After being off the board for two years they are eligible to run again.
Candidates may be nominated by two methods. Candidates can self-nominate with the endorsement of three additional OpenID Foundation members who support their nomination or a nominating committee formed for the election can nominate them.
Nominations occur via the OpenID Foundation elections tool, which can be accessed by OpenID Foundation members at https://openid.net/foundation/members/.
The board did not select a nominating committee for this election.
Notice of the election will be posted prominently on our web site and e-mailed to members. Other announcement vehicles may be employed as well, such as a note sent to the general OpenID mailing list.
There is no quorum requirement among the eligible voters.
The election will be conducted using the OpenIDs associated with the members' memberships.
How can members confirm that their OpenID has been associated with their membership prior to the election? Members can confirm that their OpenID is registered by logging in at https://openid.net/foundation/members/.
The election will be conducted on the following schedule:
Times on all dates are Noon, U.S. Pacific Time.