Voting has now closed

We would like to publicly announce the voting period which opened on Tuesday 15 March and will remain open until Thursday 14 April (5pm BST).
 

Academic Members, who are eligible to vote, will have received an email from the platform OpaVote with a one-time link to cast their vote. If you are eligible to vote but did not receive a link, please reach out to PSA staff at [email protected].
 

Open Trustee positions

There are two open positions up-for-grabs on the PSA’s Executive Committee. 
 

In what remains challenging times, the PSA continues with its journey to excellence, sustainability, diversity and growth as the leading learned society in our discipline. This builds on the considerable achievements of the PSA staff and its board of trustees in this past year of turmoil and uncertainty for many. And while none of this would be possible without the leadership of our Chair Professor Roger Awan-Scully, and the drive and diligence of our Chief Executive, Michelle Doyle Wildman and her excellent staff team, the association looks to the Executive Committee of Trustees to provide them with strategic leadership, scrutiny and support.

There are five candidates running for election: 

• Andrew Roe Crines
• Liam McLoughlin
• Andy Mycock
• Indrajit Roy
• James Strong

Check out our Election Guidance below for all you need to know about the PSA’s election process.

What am I voting for?
 

The Political Studies Association has two positions vacant on its Executive Committee.

These trustees will provide strategic leadership to the Association and will also become legal trustees of the Association as a charity, and therefore must act in accordance with Charity Commission guidelines.
 

Who are our current trustees? Click here to meet the current team.
 

How were nominations made for these elections?
 

Candidates could nominate themselves between January and March this year. This year’s call for nominations can be found here.
 

Am I eligible to vote?
 

• All Academic and ECM members of the Political Studies Association are eligible to vote
• Schools, Wider Public Members and Student Members are not eligible to vote
• Full eligibility terms can be found in 3.2 of our organisations Bye-Laws.
   

How do I vote?
 

• The PSA is hosting their Executive Committee Elections on OpaVote
• All those eligible to vote will receive an email from OpaVote that will include a direct link to voting
• If you believe you are eligible to vote and have not received this email please contact [email protected]
• Before contacting the office please ensure you check your junk mail/spam.
   

What voting method do the PSA use?
 

The PSA use Scottish STV for electing members to our Executive Committee. 
 

What are the campaigning rules for candidates?
 

• Please keep the election a positive and good-humoured affair. If you happen not to be elected, there will be another election the following year, so please focus on telling others of your possible contributions, rather than other candidates’ weaknesses. 
• In terms of campaigning techniques, please feel free to canvas to your colleagues, send emails to colleagues in other institutions, and post on social media. If tweeting, please use #PSAElections
• There is a strict budget of £0 for each candidate in the election; in other words, you cannot spend any money on your election, be it to purchase gifts for voters, take out newspaper advertisements, or otherwise.
• If Specialist Groups wish to highlight individual candidates, they must please highlight every candidate who is a member of their Group when doing so. 
   

I have a question or complaint regarding the PSA elections, who do I contact?
 

The Honorary Secretary acts as the Returning Officer for PSA Executive Committee elections

Another member of the Executive Committee will be appointed if the Honorary Secretary is themselves running or has declared a conflict of interest

This year’s returning officer is Fiona Mackay, who can be contacted via [email protected]

Click here for full versions of the PSA’s governing documents and Bye-Laws