Senate District 45 DFL 2010 Convention Rules
Senate District 45 DFL Convention
Rules
Governing Authority and Agenda
1. Upon all matters not governed by the Official Call, the State DFL Party Constitution and
Bylaws, the Senate District 45 DFL Constitution, and these Rules, Robert’s Rules of Order – most recently revised shall govern. Provisions of the Official Call shall take precedence over any other party rules at any level wherever conflict exists.
2. A majority vote of the convention is required to adopt these rules and the agenda. Once adopted, these rules and the agenda shall govern unless suspended or modified by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the convention.
3. The quorum for conducting any business of the convention is a majority of the registered delegates (including upgraded alternates).
Seating of Delegates and Alternates
4. Registration of delegates and alternates to the convention shall continue until adjournment.
5. Precinct chair shall serve as chair of precinct delegation. Inthe absencee of the precnict chair, , assoicate chairs shall serve as precinct delegation co-chairs. The convention chair shall instruct the convention as to the duties each delegation chair will be expected to perform during the convention. The name of each delegation chair shall be reported promptly to the convention chair. Any delegate shall be eligible for election as delegation chair.
6. The seating of delegates and alternates shall be governed by the following:
(a) All registered delegates (not alternates) on the temporary roll shall be seated.
(b) The convention shall hear and resolve any challenges regarding delegate or alternate seating pursuant to the Official Call.
(c) Any delegates or alternates entitled to be seated after all challenges have been resolved shall go with their delegation chair so that proper seating can be arranged. As soon as practicable after verification of a quorum, the registration staff shall function inside the convention hall as to permit its members to maintain a consistent and accurate delegate count by precincts while participating as convention delegates.
(d) Alternates elected at large shall be upgraded to delegate status according to their numerical ranking on the precinct report. Alternates elected through subcaucus voting systems will be upgraded to delegate status in the order reported within their subcaucus. If there are no alternates available within a subcaucus, alternates will be raised by lot from among the highest ranking alternates within the other subcaucuses. Each subcaucus will be represented in the lot system in proportion to its delegate allocation strength.
(e) The registration staff shall issue identification badges to delegates, alternates and visitors during the registration process. Badges issued to each group shall be of a different color.
(f) A temporary delegate badge shall be issued to an appropriate alternate when the alternate is raised to delegate status. There shall be no upgrading of alternates during any voting process. If the raised alternate is subsequently returned to alternate status, the alternates delegate badge shall be immediately surrendered to the registration table.
(g) Unseated alternates and visitors shall be seated separately from delegates and shall not be allowed on the convention floor during the convention.
General Convention Rules
7. The convention shall not adjourn until all elections have been held for the following positions:
(a) State Convention Delegates and Alternates
(b) Party Officers and Directors
(c) State Central Committee Members and Alternates
8. One or more convention chairs, with gender balance, if applicable, shall be elected by a plurality vote of the convention. The convention chairs may appoint a convention secretary, timekeepers, judges, clerks, tellers, sergeants-at-arms, parliamentarians, pages, and any other assistants as they deem necessary to conduct convention business.
9. For state delegate and alternate elections and for state central committee elections, there shall be an equal division by gender.
10. Even numbered allocations shall be divided equally. Odd numbered allocations shall be as equally divided as possible. If both delegate and alternate allocations are odd numbered, the imbalance in delegate election must be reversed in favor of the opposite gender in the alternate election.
11. Candidates for elective positions listed in Rule 7 shall be nominated without a speech, but each candidate may have two (2) minutes to use as he or she wishes.
12. In the event of a tie vote, there will be a run-off ballot including only the names of the tied candidates; if a tie still exists, it will be broken by lot. All other voting shall be by voice vote or standing division unless a written ballot is requested by the convention chair or by one-third (1/3) of the delegates present.
13. The convention teller(s) shall distribute ballots to the chair of each precinct delegation on matters to be determined by written ballot. Ballots shall be distributed only to delegates and upgraded alternates seated under the rules of the convention. These ballots shall be returned by the precinct delegation chair to the tellers.
14. Smoking and the use of intoxicants is prohibited on the convention floor. No smoking is allowed in the hallways adjacent to the convention hall, or outside the main entry to the building. All persons shall comply with any additional rules established by the convention facility.
15. No person may place any banners or posters on the convention platform or in any way obstruct the view of the platform by delegates. All signs and other materials must comply with the rules of the convention facility, and with any additional rules and procedures established by the Senate District Central Committee. Campaign literature may not be distributed in the convention hall after balloting has begun. No moving demonstrations are permitted during balloting. There shall be no disruptive demonstrations in the galleries. Each delegation will be responsible for collecting materials and garbage. Whistles, air horns, bull horns, strobe lights and other similar devises will not be allowed during the convention in the convention hall.
16. Incumbent DFL office holders, declared DFL candidates for public office, and other party dignitaries may address the convention at the discretion of the convention chair. Such visitors will be requested to limit their remarks to no more than three minutes.
Election of Party Officers
17. The Senate District Chair, Associate Chair (of the opposite gender from the Chair), Secretary, Treasurer and Affirmative Action Officer shall be elected by a majority vote. Voting will be conducted by separate ballot for each position. If none of the nominees for an office receives a majority vote on a ballot, the nominee with the least number of votes will be dropped on the next ballot, provided that at least two candidates remain on that ballot.
18. The convention shall elect eleven (11) directors, with gender balance, as close as possible. If delegates sufficient to elect one director requests proportional voting for directors, the convention shall use the Walking Subcaucus system and the time limits specified in Rule 25 (d) shall apply. If proportional voting is not used, directors will be elected by majority vote of the convention.
19. State central committee members and alternates will be elected by the convention as a whole. The number to be elected is specified in the Official Call. If a contest for members exists and more than two (2) members are to be elected by the convention, the convention chair will ask for a show of hands on proportional voting.
(a) If delegates sufficient to elect one member request proportional voting, the convention will use the Walking Subcaucus system and the time limits specified in Rule 25 (d) shall apply.
(b) If proportional voting is not used, members and alternates shall be elected by majority vote of the convention. A record of the number of votes that each alternate receives will be recorded for purposes of ranking alternates.
(c) If proportional voting is used, alternates shall be ranked according to the size of each subcaucus.
(d) If proportional voting is not used for election of members and more than two (2) alternates are to be elected, the above procedures will be used to determine if proportional voting is to be used for the election of alternates.
20. The report of the Nominations Committee shall place in nomination the committee’s recommendation. Other nominations shall be made from the floor without speeches or seconds.
21. The convention chair shall insure that each election complies with the requirements regarding equal division by gender. When the convention reconvenes following any election conducted using proportional representation, the persons elected (with their ranking, where applicable) shall be reported to the convention chair.
State Senate and House District Endorsement Rules
22. Endorsement of a candidate for State Senate requires a sixty percent (60%) affirmative vote of the Senate District Convention.
(a) Each candidate (and his/her representative(s) shall be allowed no more than ten (10) minutes to address the convention.
(b) The convention may adopt by majority vote, rules and procedures for a question and answer period of the candidates prior to the first ballot.
(c) Candidates receiving less than ten percent (10%) will be dropped after the first ballot. On subsequent ballots, the drop off percent will be raised by five percent (5%) each ballot. In addition, after the fourth ballot, the lowest remaining candidate will be dropped regardless of the percent. However in no case will this drop off rule be used to reduce the number of candidates remaining on the next ballot to less than two (2).
(d) If no candidate for endorsement has received sixty percent (60%) of the votes after three (3) ballots, a motion to have no endorsement will be in order at any time thereafter, and will pass with a majority vote. In that event, balloting shall terminate and the Senate District will not endorse for that position prior to the primary election.
23. The Senate District Convention shall recess into two House District Conventions. The House District Conventions shall each elect one or more Chairs. The business of each House District Convention shall be endorsement of a candidate for the State House of Representatives from that house district, and any other business authorized by the Senate District Constitution. The Senate District Convention shall reconvene upon completion of the House District Conventions.
24. Endorsement of a candidate for State House of Representatives by each House District Convention shall be done using the procedures in Rule 22, substituting “House” for “Senate”.
Election of State Delegates and Alternates
25. The number of state delegates and alternates to be elected by the Convention appears in the Official Call. The procedures to be used in the election of delegates and alternates to the congressional district and state convention are as follows:
(a) The convention chair shall determine if a contest exists by a show of hands. If no more than want to serve than there are delegate positions, no contest exists and a formal election will not be held.
(b) If a contest exists, the convention chair shall ask for a show of hands on proportional voting. If delegates equal to the number represented by one (1) state convention delegate want proportional voting, it must be used. If proportional voting is not used, the Convention will elect state convention delegates by majority vote. Alternates will be nominated and elected in a similar fashion.
(c) The number of votes each alternate receives will be recorded for use in alternate ranking at the congressional district and state conventions. Even if no contest exists for alternate selection, the vote must be taken to determine this ranking. Any ties are broken by lot.
(d) If proportional voting is used, the convention will use the Walking Subcaucus system. Delegates will have an initial period of fifteen (15) minutes after subcaucus nominations are completed to move to the subcaucus of their choice, and will have an additional period of fifteen (15) minutes after the preliminary count is announced by the Convention Chair to move among the subcaucuses.
Speech and Debate Rules
26. No delegate may speak until recognized by the convention chair. Speakers will first state their name and precinct. No person may speak more than once on an item of business until all others on that side who wish to do so have had an opportunity.
27. Unless otherwise provided for in these rules, no delegate shall speak for more than two minutes on any item. The convention chair will rotate speaking privileges among floor microphones and between proponents and opponents of a measure to the extent possible. Debate will terminate when three (3) speakers have been heard on each side.
28. With respect to credentials challenges to delegations; prior to floor debate speakers on behalf of both the challenged delegation and the challenging delegation shall each be allowed five (5) minutes in total to present their positions, with the challenged delegation speaking last.
29. Any motion to table shall be considered as though it were a motion to postpone indefinitely. A motion to postpone indefinitely does not preclude amendments to the main motion. The motions “to reconsider and enter on the minutes” and “to object to consideration” are not in order. The motion to reconsider is in order and will require a two-thirds (2/3) vote.
30. Any amendment to a motion or resolution which removes, changes or adds five (5) or more words must be submitted in writing to the convention chair before being considered. When the motion to amend is made, it must be seconded by at least one (1) other delegate. Amendments take a majority vote for adoption.
Platform Resolutions
31. The convention shall vote on each resoltuion presented.
32. The Senate District Convention can forward to the State Platform Commission thirty-eight(38) resolutions. The resolutions to be forwarded by the Senate District Convention must be selected from among those resolutions adopted by the precinct caucuses within the Senate District. The resolutions forwarded to the State Platform Commission should address party positions on state and national issues. Resolutions that cover only local issues should not be forwarded to the State Platform Commission. All resolutions forwarded to the State Platform Commission must be submitted in the format prescribed by the State Platform Commission, with only one resolution per form and only one subject per resolution.
33. The Platform Resolutions Statement provided by the State DFL office shall be read to the convention, which shall select the resolutions to forward, before consideration of the platform resolutions begins.
34. The Convention shall decide which thirty-eight (38) resolutions to forward to the State Platform Commission by written ballot. Of the top thrity-eight (38) resolutions, those that are forwarded to the State Platform commission must also receive sixty percent (60%) affirmative vote. Any ties for last place shall be decided by lot. All delegates and upgraded alternates to the convention will receive the resolutions (by category and numbered sequentially) and an indication of how many precincts had like resolutions. Delegates and upgraded alternates will receive a ballot sheet with instructions for voting. All ballots must be turned in to the precinct delegation chair by the conclusion of the platform ballot voting period designated in the Agenda.
34. The Senate District Chair should send or deliver the resolutions selected to the State DFL office no later than March 17, 2010.