Constituency Association Constitution Template

(DRAFT - NOT YET APPROVED)

This template is for those who wish to build a riding association and do not want to go about the daunting task of creating the constitution from scratch. In all likelyhood every riding association constitution will be slightly different. Consider this a guide to party-approved best practices.

The Template
PIRATE PARTY OF CANADA CONSTITUENCY ASSOCIATION CONSTITUTION

ARTICLE I: NAME
1.1 The name of the Association is Pirates of ______________________.

ARTICLE II: INTERPRETATION
2.1 In this constitution:

a) “Association” means Pirates of _________________;

b) “Board of Directors” or “the Board” means the Board by that name established under Article VII;

c) “Candidate” means the person elected by the members of the Association as the Party Candidate for election to the Canadian House of Commons;

d) “Constituency” means the electoral district of __________________;

e) “Director” means any member of the Board of Directors;

f) “Member” means a member of the Pirate Party of Canada residing in the Constituency;

g) “Nominee” means a person duly nominated for election by the members of the Association as the Party Candidate for election to the Canadian House of Commons in the ridings of _______________;

h) “Party” or “the Party” means Pirate Party of Canada;

i) “Returning Officer” means a member who has been appointed by the Board of Directors to supervise the candidate selection at a Candidate Nomination Meeting.

ARTICLE III: OBJECTIVES
3.1 The objectives of the Association are:

a) to develop, support, and promote the principles, objectives and policies of the party;

b) to create and maintain an efficient Constituency organization to promote and secure public support for the principles, objectives and policies of the Party.

c) to nominate candidates to represent the Party in the Constituency at each Federal election and by-election;

d) to assist and promote the election of the candidate of the Party in the Constituency at each Federal election and by-election;

e) to raise money and maintain a fund to support the Association and to assist candidates in Federal elections and by-elections in the Constituency;

f) to promote activity throughout the Constituency.

ARTICLE IV: MEMBERSHIP
4.1 Every natural person is eligible for membership in the Association who:

a) is a Canadian citizen;

b) resides within the Constituency;

c) is not less than 16 years of age;

d) supports the principles of the party;

e) and is a member of the Party.

4.2 An eligible person shall become a member of the Association upon payment of the annual fees to the Party and entry on the membership list at the central office of the Party.

4.3 Members of the Party are members of the Association of the Constituency in which they reside.

4.4 A person ceases to be a member of the Association upon submitting to an Officer of the Association a written resignation or upon ceasing to be eligible under Article 4.1 or 4.2 above, or when his or her membership in the Party is terminated.

4.5 A member whose dues have lapsed not more than 6 months shall, upon payment of the annual membership fee, be considered a member in good standing retroactive to the date when his or her membership lapsed.

ARTICLE V: VOTING
5.1 Except as otherwise provided herein, a member of the Association is entitled to vote on all matters coming before a general meeting of the Association on which a vote is required.

5.2 Only those who have been members in good standing for not less than 30 days immediately prior to the date of voting, with the exception of those meeting the criteria of Article 4.5, and who are residents within the Constituency are entitled to vote on:

a) the election of Directors of the Association;

b) the selection of Candidates for election to the Canadian House of Commons;

c) proposed motions the members would like the Directors of the Association to bring before the general meeting of the Party;

d) and acceptance of, and amendments to, this Constitution.


 * Voting on all of the above matters except (d), shall be by secret ballot.

5.3 Except as otherwise herein provided, all items requiring a vote at meetings of the Association shall be determined by a simple majority of members present and voting. Voting shall be done in person, or by electronic means if the member can provide sufficient proof of identity to satisfy the meeting chair. Whether the meeting chair approves a vote by electronic means is entirely within their prerogative. However, once approved a member voting by electronic means cannot have their voting status revoked by the meeting chair. In case of a tie vote, the meeting chair shall cast the deciding vote. This is the only time the chair may cast a vote.

5.4 There shall be no voting by proxy at any meeting of the Association or of the Board of Directors.

ARTICLE VI: MEETINGS
6.1 Meetings of the Association shall be convened by the Board of Directors as required or shall be convened by the Secretary within thirty (30) days of receipt by the Secretary of a written request signed by not less than twenty-five (25) members or 10% of the members of the Association, whichever is greater, and notice of such meetings shall state the matters to be dealt with at the meeting. No matters shall be dealt with at a meeting convened by the Secretary pursuant to such request except those stated in such request.

6.2 A quorum at meetings of the Association shall be 40% of the number of members entitled to vote. If a meeting of the Association is convened and quorum has not been met all motions passed will be referred to the next general meeting of the Party. If the motions in question are passed at a general meeting of the Party they shall be considered passed by the Association. The exception is amendments to this Constitution which must be passed by a meeting of the Association that has quorum.

6.3 Meetings of the Association shall be held within the boundaries of the Constituency, with the exception of founding meetings which can be held at a location shared by several constituencies (including online).

6.4 The Association shall in each year, within thirty (30) days of the first day of May, hold an Annual Meeting at which the following business shall be conducted:

a) report of the Board of Directors;

b) presentation of financial statements;

c) election of Directors;

d) and such other business as may be required.

ARTICLE VII: BOARD OF DIRECTORS
7.1 The affairs of the Association shall, subject to direction from the Association, be managed and directed by a Board of Directors.

7.2 The Board of Directors shall be comprised of:

a) the Directors of the Association;

b) and the Party's Member of Parliament from the Constituency, or that Member's designated representative. If there is no elected Party Members from the Constituency, the Board shall include the Constituency Candidates for election to the Canadian House of Commons for a period of one hundred and twenty (120) days following the Federal election or by-election which he or she contested.

7.3 The number of elected Directors of the Association shall not exceed ten (10).

7.4 Notwithstanding the provisions of Article 7.3, the Board of Directors may appoint up to three (3) additional members to the Board as circumstances may require.

7.5 Directors shall be elected as follows:

a) Nominations to the Board of Directors may be made by any member of the association during an Annual General Meeting. Nominations must be seconded prior to being accepted.

b) Nominations may also come from a Nomination Committee, if applicable.

c) Directors shall be elected at the Annual Meetings from the membership at large, subject to Article 7.3

7.6 Meetings of the Board shall be convened by the Secretary at the direction of the President or shall be convened by the Secretary within a reasonable time of receiving written request for a meeting, signed by not less than five (5) members of the Board. In the event neither the position of President or Secretary are filled a meeting may be called by any Director provided the date is not less than fifteen (15), and not more than thirty (30) days away and another meetings has not already been called.

7.7 The term of office of Directors shall be from one Annual General Meeting to the next Annual General Meeting. A Director's term expires at each Annual General Meeting.

7.8 The Board of Directors may appoint the following committees and/or their Chairman:

a) Policy Committee;

b) Election Readiness Committee;

c) Nomination Committee;

d) and such other committees as it deems required.

7.9 A Director may be removed from office by a resolution passed by not less than seventy-five percent (75%) of the members present and voting at a meeting of the Board of Directors called for that purpose on not less than fifteen (15) days notice.

7.10 If a Director ceases to hold office, the Board may appoint a replacement Director from the Membership-at-large.

7.11 A Quorum of the Board of Directors is fifty percent (50%) of its members.

7.12 Reasonable effort shall be made to notify all Directors of meetings of the Board.

7.13 A Director that is absent for three consecutive board meetings is automatically assumed to have abandoned their directorship. In this event, the Board of Directors may fill the position as described in Article 7.10

ARTICLE VIII: OFFICERS
8.1 The Officers of the Association who shall be elected from their number each year by the Directors shall include:

a) President (required) who shall preside at all meetings of the Association and meetings of the Board of Directors and who shall be an ex-officio member of all committees;

b) one or more Vice-Presidents, one of whom shall assume and perform the duties of the President in the absence of the President, one of whom shall represent the Association at General Meetings of the Party;

c) a Secretary (required) who shall have custody of all records and documents, other than financial, and who shall prepare and maintain minutes of meetings of the Association and of the Board of Directors. The Secretary shall make all documents and minutes accessible to the Membership within a reasonable time-frame after they are created. The exception to the previous sentence is membership lists which may not be released. The Secretary shall also convene meetings pursuant to Article 6.1 and Article 7.6 and who shall perform such other duties as the Board may direct;

d) a Treasurer (required) who shall administer the financial affairs of the Association and keep or cause to be kept all such books of account and financial records as may be required to fairly reflect the financial affairs of the Association. At the request of a Member of the Association the Treasurer shall make known the balance of all Association accounts to the Member;

e) and such other Officers as the Board may determine.

8.2 An Officer may be removed from office by a resolution passed by not less than seventy-five percent (75%) of the Directors present and voting at a meeting of the Board of Directors called for that purpose on not less than fifteen (15) days notice.

8.3 If an Officer ceases to hold office, the Board of Directors may appoint any member of the Board to fill the position for the unexpired term.

ARTICLE IX: CANDIDATE SELECTION
9.1 Prior to each Federal election or by-election a Candidate Nomination Committee shall:

a) organize and administer a candidate recruitment, nomination and selection program;

b) conduct a thorough search to find the best available nominees to seek election as the candidate to represent the constituency in the House of Commons;

c) require the convening of a General Meeting of the Association for the purpose of selecting a Constituency Candidate, (“Candidate Nomination Meeting”) and give thirty (30) days notice thereof to all members of the Constituency, provided however that under exceptional circumstances and with the approval of the Board of Directors, the time for such a notice may be reduced to as little as seven (7) days. (i.e. An unexpected election)

9.2 The Candidate Nomination Committee shall be selected by the Board of Directors, and shall be composed of three (3) members of the Board, one of whom shall be named Chairman of the Committee, plus up to three (3) other members from the membership-at-large.

9.3 Any member of the Board of Directors who declares an intention to seek the nomination as a candidate in an upcoming Federal election or by-election, shall forthwith resign as a member of the Board, but shall be entitled, along with other nominees, to be notified of and attend meetings of the Board as a non-voting observer until the Constituency candidate has been selected. Thereafter, the selected candidate shall be a member of the Board in accordance with Article 7.2

9.4 At a Candidate Nomination Meeting, no business other than the selection of a candidate shall be conducted until after the election of a candidate has been conducted.

9.5 A person seeking nomination as a candidate for the party in the Constituency shall present to the President or Secretary, before nominations are closed, a nomination paper signed by not less than five (5) members of the Association who are entitled to vote on the selection of a candidate. The nomination paper shall be signed also by the nominee indicating acceptance of the nomination and support of the Party's Principles. Every nominee must be a member of the Party and eligible to sit as a member of the House of Commons of Canada.

9.6 Nominations shall close at 5:00 p.m., seven (7) days prior to the date of the Candidate Nomination Meeting.

9.7 At Candidate Nomination Meetings the Chairman shall:

a) call the meeting to order;

b) read the notice of meeting;

c) turn the meeting over to a Returning Officer (appointed by the Board of Directors) to supervise speeches, voting, and vote counting.

9.8 Before the vote is taken, each nominee shall be given equal time to address the meeting. The time allotment shall be determined by the Candidate Nomination Committee and communicated to all nominees in advance, and may be used by the nominee and/or the nominee's introducer as the nominee may choose.

9.9 On the ballot nominees shall be listed in random order with equal numbers of all possible listings being used on the ballots, as far as is thought reasonable by the Candidate Nomination Committee.

9.10 Ballots shall be marked in secret by eligible voters, who shall mark an “x” opposite the name of the candidate of their choice.

9.11 Each Candidate is entitled to have a scrutineer present when ballots are being counted.

9.12 If after the first vote no nominee receives more than fifty percent (50%) of the valid votes cast, then the nominee receiving the least number of votes shall withdraw and another vote shall be taken. This process shall be repeated until one nominee receives more than fifty percent (50%) of the valid votes cast. A nominee receiving over fifty percent (50%) of the valid votes cast shall be the Party Candidate for the Constituency.

9.13 Notwithstanding the provisions of Article 9.9 every vote after the first will have the nominee names listed on the ballots in alphabetical and reverse alphabetical order in equal numbers.

9.14 If only one person is nominated, that person shall be the Party Candidate for the constituency, and the Returning Officer shall so declare.

9.15 The Party Candidate selected shall be invited to address the meeting.

9.16 If for whatever reason a Party Candidate is not selected at a Candidate Nomination Meeting the Party in accordance with its constitutional provisions may nominate and approve a Candidate for the Constituency within thirty (30) days.

ARTICLE X: PARTY AFFILIATION
10.1 The Constituency Association formed by this document in accordance with the Party constitution and/or the will of the General Meeting shall continue to be formally recognized provided it:

a) maintain a Constituency Association Constitution the provisions of which are not in conflict with the Constitution of the Party;

b) actively support and promote the principles and objectives of the Party.

10.2 Formal recognition of this Constituency Association by the Party requires compliance with the Party Constitution, and includes amongst other, the following rights:

a) to participate in General Meetings.

b) to propose amendments to the Party Constitution.

c) to select candidates to represent the Constituency as candidates in Federal elections and by-elections, together with the right to have such candidates receive training and development from the Party. This right is subject to an exception provided in Article 9.16

10.3 A recognized Association shall provide the central office of the Party with the following:

a) a copy of any amendments to the Constituency Association Constitution together with a copy of the minutes of the meeting at which such amendments were approved and a copy of the Board of Director's ratification of such amendments.

b) on an ongoing basis, the names of the officers and the members of the Board of Directors with their mailing addresses and telephone numbers, and noting in order of priority, the officers to whom communications from the Party are to be addressed.

ARTICLE XI: NOTICES
11.1 Notice of meetings of the Association, together with notice of dates, times, and locations of meetings, and items to be dealt with there shall be given by, or under the direction of the Secretary to each member on record by one or more of the following methods:

a) mailing a copy of such notice to his or her address on record,

b) personally delivering a copy of such a notice,

c) by mailing to his or her address on record a copy of a Constituency Newsletter which prominently displays such a notice,

d) or emailing a copy of such a notice to his or her address on record.

11.3 When a vote is to be taken at any meeting of the Association on any of the matters listed in Article 5.2, notice of the meeting shall be given not less than thirty (30) days prior to the date on which such meeting is to be held.

11.4 Notice of meetings of the Board of Directors including an agenda shall be given by either the President or the Secretary (or any Director if circumstances described in Article 7.6 are in effect) not less than seven (7) days prior to the day of the meeting. Such notices shall be given by email, in person, or by telephone.

11.5 Notice of any meeting of the Board of Directors may be waived by the affirmative vote of all of the members of the Board.

ARTICLE XII: AMENDMENTS
12.1 This Constitution may be amended by the affirmative vote of not less than two-thirds (2/3) of the members attending and voting at a meeting of the Association for which written notice, including a description of the proposed amendment, has been duly given. Copies of the proposed amendments shall be made available at the meeting. A copy of such notice will be forwarded to the central office of the Party by the Secretary when the notice is sent to the members. Amendments shall be effective only upon ratification in writing by the Executive Board of the Party.

ARTICLE XIII: FISCAL YEAR
13.1 The fiscal year of the Association shall be the twelve (12) month period ending on December 31st each year.

ARTICLE XIV: CONFLICT
14.1 In the event of any conflict or inconsistency between this Constitution and that of the Pirate Party of Canada the latter shall prevail unless an exception is granted by the General Meeting of the Party.