provisions of Article IV, below. In the event two or more nomi-nating petitions are received by the executive director on or before March 15October 1 of any year, the election of the president-elect will be in accor-dance with the provisions of Sections 4 and 5, below. Sec. 4. Ballots. In the event nominating petitions for two or more candidates are received by the executive director, then: (a) The executive director shall prepare a ballot which shall list in alphabetical order the names of those persons nominated to the office of president-elect. (b)The president-elect ballot shall be distributed by mail or made avail-able by electronic means to all mem-bers on or before April 15November 5. The form of the ballot and the proce-dure for distribution, collection and tabulation of ballots shall be deter-mined by the executive director. (c) If any member fails to receive a ballot within ten (10) days of distri-bution, or by November 15, which-ever is later, the intended recipient shall be given a replacement ballot upon executing an affidavit, in a form to be prescribed by the Executive Committee, averring (i) that no ballot has been received and (ii) that in the event the original ballot is subse-quently received, it will promptly be returned unmarked to the executive director. The affidavit and request for a replacement ballot must be received by the executive director not later than November 22, and the replacement ballot must be returned to the execu-tive director by December 1. (d) If any member receives more than one ballot, he or she shall return the excess ballot or ballots, unmarked, to the executive director in the same envelope provided for return of his or her marked ballot. Sec. 5. Ballot Elections . The ballots shall be collected and counted in a manner which assures the confidenti-ality of the members' votes. A plurality of the votes cast by all members shall elect. No ballot received by the exec-utive director after May 1December 1 shall be counted. Write-in votes shall be permitted, but the executive direc-tor may exclude illegible write-in votes and shall exclude write-in votes for any candidate ineligible to serve pursuant to these bylaws, if elected. Sec. 6. General Provisions . The following provisions shall be applicable to any election of the president-elect under this Article III. (a) For purposes of these provi-sions, a "member" is an active member in good standing of the Virginia State Bar. Only such person may nominate, be nominated, vote or be elected in any election for the office of presi-dent-elect. (b) Records maintained by the executive director as to membership and good-standing status shall be controlling. (c) The failure to comply with the dates designated for the occurrence or completion of certain acts shall not invalidate any election, unless substan-tial prejudice can be shown to have resulted therefrom. (d) For purposes of determining voter and candidate eligibility, the membership list maintained by the ex-ecutive director as of March 15October 1 shall be controlling. Except to correct clerical errors in records maintained as of that date, no revisions or additions to the membership list for purposes of the election shall be made after March 15October 1. (e) The executive director shall announce to the bar the results of the election for the office of presi-dent-elect. (f) Any responsibility assigned herein to be discharged by the execu-tive director may be assumed and dis-charged by the Executive Committee, at its discretion. (g) Any challenge to an election shall be resolved by a committee which shall be chaired by the president and shall include the president-elect, the immediate past president and two members of Council appointed by the president who shall not be current members of the Executive Committee. … Please let me know your thoughts on the election process in general, or in specific. You can reach me at gould@vsb.org or (804) 775-0550. Endnotes 1 The remaining 47 votes were for write-in candidates. 2 Paragraph 4 is contained in Part 6, § IV of the Rules of the Supreme Court of Virginia. 3 The complete text of the VSB bylaws can be found by searching for “bylaws” in the search bar on the VSB website. AVAILABLE NOW Manual para Adultos Mayores de Virginia The Senior Virginians Handbook is now available online in Spanish thanks to the VSB Senior Lawyers Conference. This book contains over 100 pages of information designed to assist older Virginias with a range of legal issues, and life decisions. The Manual para Adultos Mayores de Virginia is available for download online. www.vsb.org/docs/ Spanish_Senior2020.pdf The Senior Virginians Handbook in English is availble at www.vsb.org/docs/Senior_Handbook. pdf. 55