2013 ALA elections open March 19

CHICAGO — Voting in the 2013 ALA elections began at 9 a.m. Central time on March 19, 2013.  Between March 19 and March 21, the ALA will notify voters by email, providing them with their unique passcodes and information about how to vote online. The polls will close on Friday, April 26 at 11:59 p.m. Central time. 

For the fifth year in a row, the American Library Association is holding its election exclusively online.  To be eligible to vote, individuals must be members in good standing as of January 31, 2013.  Although the election is being conducted online, there remains one exception. Members with disabilities and without Internet access may obtain a paper ballot by contacting ALA customer service at 1 (800) 545-2433, ext. 5. Those without Internet access at home or work can easily access the election site by visiting their local public (or in many instances academic or school) library.

Voters will receive email reminders throughout the election period – on April 9 and April 19, (broadcast email process is completed over a 48 hour time frame).  Voting may be completed in one sitting, or an individual may “park” their ballot and return at a later date; however, a ballot is not “cast” until the “submit” button is clicked.  Anyone with a “parked” ballot will receive an email reminder to complete the voting process prior to April 26. 

This year members will be able to create a calendar reminder directly from the ballot; so if you don’t have time to vote right away, you send a reminder to your calendar to vote at a more convenient time.

Information about the ALA election and the candidates can be found in “Your Guide to the 2013 ALA Elections” at tinyurl.com/2013electionguide.   A PDF version of the guide can be found at tinyurl.com/2013electionguidepdf. 

Voting is your way of ensuring that the Association leaders hear your voice!