About Us Leadership Election Information

NSPRA is governed by an Executive Board comprised of 13 officers: a president; president-elect; immediate past president; vice president of diversity engagement; seven regional vice presidents; and two appointed vice presidents at-large, who represent different interest groups among our membership.

NSPRA Executive Board Elections

The annual call for candidates is issued in January, candidate materials are due by April 1, an official slate of candidates is announced by NSPRA in June, and the election of officers is conducted in August. Ballots for contested positions are sent to all eligible voting members (professional membership required to vote and hold office) by August 15. Completed ballots must be returned no later than 15 working days from that date. On or before September 30, the Board of Tellers certifies the election results and those receiving a plurality of votes take office on October 1.

In the event that a candidate runs uncontested for an office, the Executive Board may affirm the candidate by acclamation and no election will be held for that office. Because NSPRA does not hold its election at the National Seminar, there is no provision for running from the floor. NSPRA Bylaws do not allow for write-in candidates.

Once elected to the Executive Board, officers must fulfill their duties in accordance with NSPRA Bylaws. These duties may include:

• Doing whatever may be necessary for the furtherance of the purposes of the association, the attainment of the purposes of the Articles of Incorporation, and the study and teaching of its ideals, its ethics and its unique features or organization
• Assisting the president in preparing programs for the Annual Meeting and other meetings of the association
• Authorizing appointment of all committees
• Formulating policies for the program and services of the association
• Directing the Executive Director in the depositing or investing of such moneys as the association may receive and in business arrangements made on behalf of the association

Eligibility

To be eligible to run for an NSPRA office, candidates must:

• Have maintained a professional membership for the past five consecutive years;
• Be a member of their state NSPRA chapter if one exists;
• Have leadership and service experience with a chapter, on an NSPRA committee/task force/project team or with a Universal Accreditation Board (UAB)-member organization;
• Have at least three years of NSPRA National Seminars attendance;
• Comply with NSPRA policies on elections and campaigning; and
• Sign a Commitment to Service Agreement to fulfill the responsibilities of the office.

Members may not run for office if they reside in the same state as the regional vice president whose term is expiring (applies only to regional vice president offices), another employee of their district or organization is a current elected or appointed officer of NSPRA, and/or they are a paid employee/representative of an NSPRA chapter.

It is preferred that a candidate for NSPRA president-elect be accredited in public relations (APR).