National Officer Elections | Chapter Elections

AAJA National Officer Elections

Every year, AAJA holds membership-wide elections for national officers. The elections are staggered to ensure continuity on the Board of Directors. In odd years, the positions eligible for elections are Senior Vice President, Vice President of Journalism Programs and Vice President of Communications. In even years, the positions eligible for elections are President, Vice President of Civic Engagement and Vice President of Finance.

The national officers are members of the AAJA Board of Directors. In addition to the six national officers, the Board of Directors is comprised of five elected board members who are members of the AAJA Advisory Board: two board members representing small chapters (fewer than 50 full* members) and/or medium chapters (50-99 full members), one board member representing a large chapter (100 or more full members) and two members elected at-large by and from the Advisory Board. These five members’ terms are also staggered to ensure continuity on the Board of Directors.

AAJA’s elections are rooted in the following core principles: dedication to AAJA’s mission, transparency, respect, empathy, open and constructive debate and the pursuit of organizational and financial stability of AAJA as a nonprofit.

*Full members refer to all Professional, Gold Professional, Platinum Professional, Lifetime, and Emerging Markets members.

Positions up for 2027-2028 two year term are: 

      • President
      • Vice President of Civic Engagement
      • Vice President of Finance (Treasurer)
Nomination, Candidate, and Voter Eligibility
You must be an eligible member to participate in this election, including submitting nominations, be a candidate, and vote. Eligible members are any current Professional, Gold Professional, Platinum Professional, Lifetime, Student or Emerging Markets member in good standing. We strongly encourage you to confirm your membership status and primary email address in advance to ensure you can participate in this election.
In addition to the above, candidates for President must have at least one year’s experience either on the national Board of Directors or as a chapter president. Candidates for VP of Finance (Treasurer) may be an Ally member.
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NOMINATE by may 21
ELECTIONS TIMELINE
      • Nomination period opens: Thursday, May 7. 
      • Nomination period closes: Thursday, May 21 (11:59 pm PT)
      • Candidate announcement: Thursday, May 28
      • Virtual candidate forum: Tentatively scheduled for Thursday, June 4
      • Membership deadline for eligibility to vote: Wednesday, June 10 (11:59pm PT). You must be an eligible member at this time to receive an electronic ballot. See more under Voting Period.
      • Voting starts: Thursday, June 11. 
      • Voting deadline: Thursday, June 25 (11:59 pm PT)
      • Results announced: Saturday, June 27 at #AAJA26 Gala. Detailed results will be emailed by Monday, June 29, to all current AAJA members.
CANDIDATE FORUM

The virtual candidate forum will take place after the nomination period closes and is tentatively scheduled for Thursday, June 4. This forum will provide a platform for candidates to share their visions for AAJA. All members are invited to join this town hall, where you will hear remarks from all candidates and can participate in a Q&A session. The forum will be recorded and made available online for those unable to attend. 

VOTING PERIOD

Electronic ballots will only be sent once on Thursday, June 11. All eligible members (current Professional, Gold Professional, Platinum Professional, Lifetime, Student or Emerging Markets members) in good standing as of 11:59 pm PT on Wednesday, June 10 will receive their voting ballots to the primary email associated with their AAJA membership. If you are not an eligible member at that time, you will not receive a ballot and will not be able to vote in this election. There is no option for absentee ballots. 

We strongly encourage you to check your membership status and primary email address in advance.

If you have questions about your membership, please reach out to us at support@aaja.org.

INELIGIBLE VOTERS

Ally Members, Retired Members, and Organizations (Media Members) are ineligible to vote.

AAJA National Officer Elections Guide
Please refer to and familiarize yourself with the AAJA National Officer Elections Guide, which incorporates updated practices and standards governing AAJA’s elections.
For more questions about the election, please contact Annie Yu, Vice President of Communications and Elections Officer, at vpcomms@aaja.org. For questions about your membership, reach out to support@aaja.org.

Chapter Elections

In accordance with our bylaws, every year, all chapter board elections must be completed by Nov. 1 and the full board list must be submitted to AAJA-HQ by Nov. 5. Detailed instructions will be sent to your chapter emails.

AAJA needs you! Becoming an AAJA chapter leader is an incredible opportunity to gain leadership skills in people management, project management, communications, and budgeting. Please consider running to empower others, support AAJA’s mission, and prepare yourself to advance onto other leadership roles, both at AAJA and in your profession. 

For more information on what it means to hold a chapter leadership position, view the webinar below.

Suggested timeline for 2026:

      • Monday, September 14: Open nominations
      • Monday, September 21: Close nominations
      • Monday, September 28: Announce candidates
      • Monday, October 5: Voting start
      • Monday, October 19: Voting deadline
      • Monday, October 26: Announce results
      • Thursday, November 5th: Deadline to report results to AAJA-HQ and the Vice President of Communications, as written in our By-Laws.

Timely submission of results is crucial. If you have any questions, please reach out to vpcomms@aaja.org and support@aaja.org. Thank you for your cooperation!

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