AMSAT 2020 BoD Ballot Arrived : ??
I received the 2020 AMSAT BoD ballot via US Postal Service today.
I noticed that the envelope for this ballot is addressed to the AMSAT Secretary, Brennan Price, at a post office box in Vienna, VA. The envelope has my return address pre-printed in the upper left corner.
The standard mail-in ballot practice, is to NOT use an identifiable return address. A separate ballot envelope (sometimes a different, specific color) is provided for the member’s ballot. This assures that the member’s ballot remains Secret and the envelope only Opened during the physical counting process. This minimizes or eliminates Ballot Tampering. == The 2020 mail-in ballot process is different than the 2019 election, when AMSAT used a third-party to assure a secret ballot for BoD election process. I previously worked for Ernst&Young, which handles sensitive and visible balloting for many high-profile organizations (expect the Oscars, that is PwC).
I raise my hand in objection, that this 2020 mail-in balloting method does not assure the line of secrecy from member to the vote counting (tabulation) process.
Greg Beat, w9gb AMSAT-NA life member == ANS-188 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins DATE: 2019 July 7 To All RADIO AMATEURS 2019 AMSAT Board of Directors Election Update
The 2019 AMSAT Board of Directors election will be conducted differently than in past elections. In previous years, the balloting process was handled by multiple vendors. This year, AMSAT has contracted with a single, independent party, ElectionBuddy, to conduct and fully manage the election process. Sincerely, Clayton L. Coleman, W5PFG AMSAT Secretary
Sent from iPad Air
Hi Gregory,
I believe that Brennan was doing his best to run a fair election, and this is an unintentional mistake. Brennan was under pressure to make things less fair, and did not.
On Sat, Jul 18, 2020, 1:11 PM Gregory Beat via AMSAT-BB amsat-bb@amsat.org wrote:
I received the 2020 AMSAT BoD ballot via US Postal Service today.
I noticed that the envelope for this ballot is addressed to the AMSAT Secretary, Brennan Price, at a post office box in Vienna, VA. The envelope has my return address pre-printed in the upper left corner.
The standard mail-in ballot practice, is to NOT use an identifiable return address. A separate ballot envelope (sometimes a different, specific color) is provided for the member’s ballot. This assures that the member’s ballot remains Secret and the envelope only Opened during the physical counting process. This minimizes or eliminates Ballot Tampering. == The 2020 mail-in ballot process is different than the 2019 election, when AMSAT used a third-party to assure a secret ballot for BoD election process. I previously worked for Ernst&Young, which handles sensitive and visible balloting for many high-profile organizations (expect the Oscars, that is PwC).
I raise my hand in objection, that this 2020 mail-in balloting method does not assure the line of secrecy from member to the vote counting (tabulation) process.
Greg Beat, w9gb AMSAT-NA life member == ANS-188 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins DATE: 2019 July 7 To All RADIO AMATEURS 2019 AMSAT Board of Directors Election Update
The 2019 AMSAT Board of Directors election will be conducted differently than in past elections. In previous years, the balloting process was handled by multiple vendors. This year, AMSAT has contracted with a single, independent party, ElectionBuddy, to conduct and fully manage the election process. Sincerely, Clayton L. Coleman, W5PFG AMSAT Secretary
Sent from iPad Air _______________________________________________ Sent via AMSAT-BB@amsat.org. AMSAT-NA makes this open forum available to all interested persons worldwide without requiring membership. Opinions expressed are solely those of the author, and do not reflect the official views of AMSAT-NA. Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program! Subscription settings: https://www.amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb
The letter that came with it explains --
ballots will be removed from the evnvelopes and placed in a receptacle. Then at a different time and location, they will be counted -- anonymously.
I'm OK with this.
Jim
wb4gcs@amsat.org
On 7/18/2020 4:38 PM, Bruce Perens via AMSAT-BB wrote:
Hi Gregory,
I believe that Brennan was doing his best to run a fair election, and this is an unintentional mistake. Brennan was under pressure to make things less fair, and did not.
On Sat, Jul 18, 2020, 1:11 PM Gregory Beat via AMSAT-BB amsat-bb@amsat.org wrote:
I received the 2020 AMSAT BoD ballot via US Postal Service today.
I noticed that the envelope for this ballot is addressed to the AMSAT Secretary, Brennan Price, at a post office box in Vienna, VA. The envelope has my return address pre-printed in the upper left corner.
The standard mail-in ballot practice, is to NOT use an identifiable return address. A separate ballot envelope (sometimes a different, specific color) is provided for the member’s ballot. This assures that the member’s ballot remains Secret and the envelope only Opened during the physical counting process. This minimizes or eliminates Ballot Tampering. == The 2020 mail-in ballot process is different than the 2019 election, when AMSAT used a third-party to assure a secret ballot for BoD election process. I previously worked for Ernst&Young, which handles sensitive and visible balloting for many high-profile organizations (expect the Oscars, that is PwC).
I raise my hand in objection, that this 2020 mail-in balloting method does not assure the line of secrecy from member to the vote counting (tabulation) process.
Greg Beat, w9gb AMSAT-NA life member == ANS-188 AMSAT News Service Weekly Bulletins DATE: 2019 July 7 To All RADIO AMATEURS 2019 AMSAT Board of Directors Election Update
The 2019 AMSAT Board of Directors election will be conducted differently than in past elections. In previous years, the balloting process was handled by multiple vendors. This year, AMSAT has contracted with a single, independent party, ElectionBuddy, to conduct and fully manage the election process. Sincerely, Clayton L. Coleman, W5PFG AMSAT Secretary
Sent from iPad Air _______________________________________________ Sent via AMSAT-BB@amsat.org. AMSAT-NA makes this open forum available to all interested persons worldwide without requiring membership. Opinions expressed are solely those of the author, and do not reflect the official views of AMSAT-NA. Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program! Subscription settings: https://www.amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb
Sent via AMSAT-BB@amsat.org. AMSAT-NA makes this open forum available to all interested persons worldwide without requiring membership. Opinions expressed are solely those of the author, and do not reflect the official views of AMSAT-NA. Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program! Subscription settings: https://www.amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb
participants (3)
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Bruce Perens -
Gregory Beat -
Jim Sanford