Members Approve Amendments to GVEA’s Bylaws and Elect Director for District 4, District 7 Set for a Runoff Election
JUNE 6, 2024 – This evening, six election judges from GVEA’s Member Advisory Committee counted ballots and certified the election results for Districts 4 and 7 directors, as well as the results for the full membership vote on proposed amendments to GVEA’s Bylaws. Incumbent director Gary Newman was reelected to District 4. In District 7, a runoff election will take place between the top two candidates, incumbent director Todd Adams and Krista Zappone. Additionally, the proposed amendments to GVEA’s Bylaws passed and will take effect on August 1, 2024, following the District 7 runoff election.
In order for an election to be valid, GVEA’s Bylaws require a minimum of 10% of the total district membership to vote in director elections and a minimum of 3% of the full membership to vote on changes to the Bylaws. These percentage thresholds were surpassed in all three elections.
District 4 Director Election:
There were two candidates on the ballot for District 4: Gary Newman (incumbent) and Harmony Tomaszewski.
- Gary Newman received the most votes between the two candidates.
- Gary Newman: 650 votes / 52.38%
- Harmony Tomaszewski: 591 votes / 47.62%
- Consistent with GVEA’s Bylaws, Gary Newman received at least 40% of the votes cast required to be elected.
District 7 Director Election:
There were three candidates on the ballot for District 7: Todd Adams (incumbent), Cyrus Cooper and Krista Zappone.
- Todd Adams: 76 votes / 33.04%
- Cyrus Cooper: 65 votes / 28.26%
- Krista Zappone: 89 votes / 38.70%
- GVEA’s current Bylaws require a candidate to receive 40% of the votes cast. With no candidate reaching that threshold, a runoff election will be held between the two candidates receiving the largest number of votes, Todd Adams and Krista Zappone.
Vote on General Revision to GVEA’s Bylaws:
In addition to the director elections, proposed amendments to GVEA’s Bylaws were presented to the full membership as a General Revision, with the option to vote YES or NO to approve the proposed General Revision in its entirety.
- The General Revision was approved by the membership.
- YES, approve the General Revision to GVEA’s Bylaws: 3,232 votes / 79.55%
- NO, reject the General Revision to GVEA’s Bylaws: 831 votes / 20.45%
- This year, GVEA offered the chance to win the equivalent of six months of free electricity to members who cast a valid ballot in the Bylaws vote. The winner will be announced Monday, June 10.
Congratulations to Gary Newman. He will officially be reseated to the GVEA Board of Directors at the June 25, 2024, board meeting. The elected candidate from the District 7 runoff will be seated at the July 23, 2024, board meeting. Information on the runoff election and how and when to vote will be published on various media platforms, including our Elections page, in the coming days.
GVEA extends our sincere appreciation to all of the candidates. We recognize the commitment required to run for a seat on the board of directors and we thank you for your willingness to serve the membership.
Thank you to members in Districts 4 and 7 who took the time to vote for your GVEA Director, and all members who voted on the proposed amendments to GVEA’s Bylaws.
Next year, seats on GVEA’s board of directors for Districts 5 and 6, currently held by Chris Bunch and Fred Sheen, will be up for election. For more information about GVEA’s Board of Directors, visit our Board of Directors page.