ARTICLE V

ELECTIONS

5.1 Process of Election of Delegates and Alternate Delegates to the MMA House of Delegates.

A. Right to Vote. A member of the Association has the right to vote for election of members of the House of Delegates as provided below, but on no other matter. Voting shall not be cumulative and shall not be by proxy.

B. Component Society Delegates and Alternate Delegates. The members of each component medical society shall annually elect Delegates and Alternate Delegates to the House of Delegates as follows:

1) For each 50 members or any fraction thereof as recorded on the books of the Association on December 31 of the year preceding the MMA House of Delegates meeting, each component medical society shall elect one Delegate and one Alternate Delegate, provided that each component medical society shall elect at least one Delegate and one Alternate Delegate. Component medical societies will be notified each year of the number of Delegates and Alternate Delegates to be elected for that year.

2) The component medical society shall elect only active members to the office of Delegate or Alternate Delegate.

3) The term of office of Delegates and Alternate Delegates will be determined by the component medical society.

4) The component medical society shall not allow cumulative voting or voting by proxy in the election of Delegates and Alternate Delegates.

5) A majority vote of members of the component medical society is necessary to remove a Delegate or Alternate Delegate elected from that component medical society.

C. Specialty Society Delegates and Alternate Delegates.

1) Specialty Society Application for Representation in the House of Delegates. Specialty societies not currently represented may apply for Delegate and Alternate Delegate representation in the Association House of Delegates. The specialty society must submit to the Association Board of Trustees an application for Delegate and Alternate Delegate representation in the Association House of Delegates and such additional information as the Board may request for its review. Upon receipt of an application, the Board of Trustees shall study the application for representations, and the Board shall make a recommendation to the House of Delegates regarding the granting of representation in the House of Delegates. The House of Delegates may approve or deny representation and shall have the final authority for acting on such requests. If approved, such representation shall be effective at the next meeting of the House of Delegates.

The following guidelines shall be utilized in evaluating specialty society applications for representation in the Association House of Delegates:

a) The physician specialty society shall have a minimum of 25 members or two-thirds of the society’s membership, whichever is greater, who are also members of this Association. 

b) An organization that is not represented in the House of Delegates but which is seeking representation must demonstrate (1) that it represents a field of medicine which has recognized scientific validity or that it serves physicians in some capacity related to their professional activities and (2) that it has a unique expertise, perspective, or capability that is not already represented in the House of Delegates.

c) The organization must be established and stable; therefore, it must have been in existence for at least five years prior to submitting its application.

d) The organization must be active within its field of medicine and hold at least one meeting of its members per year.

e) The organization must be statewide in scope and it must not restrict its members geographically.

f) The organization must submit a resolution or other official statement to show that the request is approved by the governing body of the organization.

2) Election of Delegates and Alternate Delegates. The members of each specialty society represented in the House of Delegates may annually elect from its membership an active member of the Association to the offices of Delegate and Alternate Delegate of the House of Delegates.

a) The term of office of Delegates and Alternate Delegates will be determined by the specialty society.

b) The manner of selection of the Delegate and Alternate Delegate may be determined by each specialty society.

3) Termination of Specialty Society Representation in the House of Delegates. Any request to terminate the representations of a specialty society in the House of Delegates shall be submitted to, or initiated by, the Board of Trustees. The Board of Trustees shall present the request, together with its recommendation, to the House of Delegates. The House of Delegates may take action as it deems advisable.

D. Section Delegates.

1) Election. Each section of the Association constituted in conformity with Section 9.2 of these Bylaws may annually elect from among the members of the section, one Delegate and one Alternate Delegate, in a manner determined by the section and approved by the Board of Trustees.

2) Termination of Section Representative. Any Delegate or Alternate Delegate elected by a section may be removed from the office by a majority of the members of the section.

E. Delegate-Alternate Delegate from Medical Schools. The Dean of each Minnesota Medical School may appoint a Delegate and Alternate Delegate who are MMA members to represent that Medical School in the Minnesota Medical Association House of Delegates. The term of office of Delegates and Alternate Delegates will be one year from each January 1.

5.2 Officers.

A. Officers Elected by the House. The Nominating and Leadership Development Committee will report to the House of Delegates at each Annual Meeting a slate of candidates for the office of Speaker, Vice-Speaker, President-Elect, and Secretary-Treasurer.

B. Ballots. Voting shall take place in writing. The nominees will be listed alphabetically on a written ballot. Nominations for all offices shall be accepted by the Speaker of the House from any Delegate prior to printing of the ballot.

C. Majority Vote. A majority of the vote cast is required to elect a nominee. A run-off shall be conducted until one nominee receives a majority vote. After the second ballot, the nominee with the fewest votes is dropped from each subsequent ballot.

D. Chairperson of the Board of Trustees. At least ninety days before convening of the House of Delegates meeting, the Board of Trustees shall open, to all voting members of the Board of Trustees, nominations for Chairperson who shall be elected from among the elected Trustees by the voting members of the Board of Trustees to serve a one-year term commencing at the close of the MMA House of Delegates meeting.

E. Terms of Office. The President-Elect, following election, shall serve as President-Elect until the end of the next Annual Meeting following the Annual Meeting at which the election occurred, at which time he/she shall become President. The President shall serve until the end of the next Annual Meeting at which time he/she shall become Immediate Past President and serve as such for a period of one year. Each other officer shall serve for a period of one year beginning at the end of the Annual Meeting at which the election occurred and until a qualified successor is elected. No officer shall serve more than 12 years in any single office, not including election or appointment to fill a vacancy.

F. Removal from Office of Officers Elected by the House. Any Officer of the Association, except for the Speaker and Vice-Speaker of the MMA House of Delegates, and the Chairperson of the Board of Trustees may be removed from office by affirmative vote of a majority of the House of Delegates. The Speaker and Vice-Speaker may be removed from office by a two-thirds vote of the entire House of Delegates.

G. Removal from Office of the Chairperson of the Board of Trustees. The Chairperson of the Board of Trustees may be removed from office by affirmative vote of a majority of the voting members of the Board of Trustees.

5.3 Trustees.

A. Geographic Trustee Election Process. At each annual meeting, the House of Delegates shall elect a Trustee to fill the term of each Trustee representing a geographic Trustee District, as described in Section 8.2, whose term expires at the end of that annual meeting. At least one month in advance of each annual meeting of the House of Delegates, the Delegates in each Trustee District for which a Trustee is to be elected shall hold a caucus at which they shall select a nominee for the office of Trustee and the name of the nominee shall be submitted to the House of Delegates for its consideration. The Speaker shall designate one component society Secretary, within each Trustee District concerned, to assume the responsibility for setting the date, place and time for such caucus. The Delegates present at this caucus shall select a Chairperson who shall present to the House of Delegates the name of the nominee selected. At the Annual Meeting of the House of Delegates, other nominations for the office of Trustee representing geographic Trustee Districts may be made from the floor, but only by one of the component medical societies in the applicable Trustee District or by an individual member of one of the component medical societies in the applicable Trustee District. No person may be nominated for or elected to the office of Trustee for any Trustee District unless the person is a member of the component medical society or one of the component medical societies in the applicable Trustee District and a regular member of the Association.

B. Geographic Trustee Terms of Office. Each Trustee representing a geographic Trustee District shall serve for a term of three years beginning at the conclusion of the Annual Meeting during which the Trustee is elected. Terms of the Trustees will be arranged so that, as nearly as possible, one-third shall be elected each year.

C. At-Large Trustee Election Process. At each Annual Meeting of the House of Delegates, if the Nominating and Leadership Development Committee forwards nominations for any At-Large Trustee positions to the House of Delegates, the House of Delegates shall vote for the candidate(s) nominated by the Nominating and Leadership Development Committee and any candidates as nominated by the House of Delegates. The Nominating and Leadership Development Committee will identify the characteristics addressed by each candidate as outlined in Section 7.6.A (ii) and the reason for selection of the nominated candidate(s).

D. At-Large Trustee Terms of Office. Each At-Large Trustee shall serve for a term of three years beginning at the conclusion of the Annual Meeting during which the Trustee is elected. Terms of the At-Large Trustees will be arranged so that, as nearly as possible, one-third of the At-Large Trustees are elected each year. Trustees shall serve no more than one term of three years as an At-Large Trustee, not including election or appointment to fill a vacancy.The term of an At-Large Trustee may be more than three years but not more than five years if it is to assure that terms are staggered. An At-Large Trustee may be elected as a Trustee representing a geographic Trustee District upon completion of his/her term of office, or upon resignation, as an At-Large Trustee.

E. Removal from Office. Any Trustee may be removed from office at any time with or without cause by the affirmative vote of two-thirds of the entire House of Delegates.

F. Term Limitation. Trustees may serve no more than three terms of three years each, not including election or appointment to fill a vacancy. Accordingly, Trustees may serve up to three terms of three years each as a Trustee representing a geographic Trustee District, or a combination of two terms of three years each as a Trustee representing a geographic Trustee District, and one three year term as an At-Large Trustee.

5.4 AMA Delegates and Alternate Delegates.

A. AMA Delegates and Alternate Delegates shall be elected by the MMA House of Delegates. The Nominating and Leadership Development Committee shall report to the Annual Meeting of the House of Delegates a slate of candidates from among the members of the MMA for Delegates and Alternate Delegates to the AMA. All nominees must be AMA members. No officer or trustee, except the President-Elect, President or Immediate Past President, shall also serve concurrently as an American Medical Association Delegate or Alternate Delegate.

B. Elections by the House of Delegates for AMA Delegates shall be held in the following order: AMA Delegates to be elected for a full term; AMA Delegates to be elected to fill an unexpired term. Unsuccessful nominees for the election of AMA Delegates to be elected for a full term shall automatically be nominated for the election of AMA Delegates to fill an unexpired term.

C. Elections for AMA Alternate Delegates shall be held in the same manner as elections for AMA Delegates.

D. Any Delegate or Alternate Delegate to the American Medical Association may be removed from office by affirmative vote of a majority of the House of Delegates.

E. AMA Delegates and AMA Alternate Delegates shall serve no more than 12 years in any single office, not including election or appointment to fill a vacancy.

F. In the event that the number of AMA members declines causing the number of AMA Delegates and Alternate Delegates from Minnesota to decrease, the Delegate(s) and Alternate Delegate(s) with the least seniority shall lose their positions on the delegation. Seniority shall be determined by the year the Delegate or Alternate Delegate was elected to their current position. Should this provision apply to more than one Delegate or Alternate Delegate with equal seniority, seniority shall be determined by lot with the MMA Board chairperson supervising.

In the event that a Delegate or Delegates lose their position, the Delegate(s) shall become Alternate Delegate(s) with the Alternate Delegate(s) with the least seniority relinquishing their position(s) on the delegation. If two or more Alternate Delegates are equal in seniority, the seniority shall be determined by lot under the supervision of the MMA Board chairperson.

Alternate Delegates who relinquish their position(s) on the delegation shall be considered by the MMA Board of Trustees at the next available opportunity for vacancies on the AMA delegation.