The Foreign Service Journal, May 2017

52 MAY 2017 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL AFSA NEWS AFSA Election Candidates Attend Town Hall Meeting Your Vote Matters—Use It! The election for the 2017- 2019 AFSA Governing Board and a vote on three pro- posed bylaw amendments is underway. Details about the election, including the rules, can be found at www.afsa. org/elections. All members should have received candidates’ cam- paign literature, proposed bylaw amendments plus explanation and a statement of opposition to one proposed amendment with their ballot, and may also view the infor- mation on the AFSA website ( http://bit.ly/2p0FeVP) . Ballots: Ballots were distributed on April 17. If you have a valid email address on file with AFSA, an email containing a unique passcode and instructions for voting online was sent to you. If you did not receive that email, and are a regular member who was in good standing as of March 17, you can also visit the secure online ballot site, www.directvote.net/AFSA , and request that an email containing unique login cre- dentials be sent to you. Be sure to add noreply@directvote.net to your approved sender list to ensure receipt. Printed ballots have been sent to all retired members via the U.S. Postal Service. If an online and a printed ballot are returned for the same member, only the printed bal- lot will be counted. If you have not received a ballot by May 8, please contact election@ afsa.org. Requests for a duplicate On April 4 AFSA hosted a town hall event for the upcoming election of the 2017-2019 AFSAGoverning Board. Shown here, from left, are Election Committee members Lee Brayman, Mort Dworken, Curt Whittaker and SusanWong (chair). Nearly 20 candidates came to speak on their platform and hear ques- tions from AFSA members. Each can- didate had the opportunity to discuss their qualifications for the position for which they are standing, and to explain how they will advocate for the Foreign Service and AFSA members if they were to be elected. A recording of the event is available on the AFSA website, www.afsa.org/elections. n ballot can be sent by email to election@afsa.org or in writ- ing to: AFSA Committee on Elections, 2101 E Street NW, Washington DC 20037. Please include your full name, cur- rent address, email address and telephone number. Ballot Tally: On June 8, at 8 a.m. EDT, the printed ballots will be collected from the post office inWashington, D.C. Printed ballots must be received at the post office by that time to be counted. The online voting site will close at 8 a.m. EDT on June 8. All AFSAmembers are strongly encouraged to vote in this election. Please review your options for voting and ensure that you cast your bal- lot in a timely manner. Thank you for your par- ticipation! n AFSA/THEOHORN ISTOCKPHOTO.COM/EINEGRAPHIC Members of the AFSA Committee on Elections at the town hall.