Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta Constitution

7/30/2019 Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta Constitution

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Amended Nov 7,200Amended Nov 7, 2009

Amended November 7, 2009


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PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE ASSOCIATION OF ALBERTA 1

Table of Contents

Objects 3

Membership 3

Delegates 4

General Meetings 5

Officers 6

Officers 7

Executive Committee 8

Meetings of the Executive Committee 9

Duties of Officers 10

Annual Financial Report 12

Rules of Procedure 12

Provincial Leadership Elections 12

Leadership Review 15

Constituency Associations 16

Amendments 22

Coming Into Effect as of This Constitution 22

Schedule A 23

Explanatory Notes 42

Contact Information 47


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CONSTITUTION

OF THEPROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE ASSOCIATION

OF ALBERTA

1. OBJECTS

The objects of the Association shall be:

To promote and assist the interests and principles of theProgressive Conservative Association of Alberta.

To promote and assist in nominating and supporting in anyProvincial Election, official Progressive Conservative

candidates, consistent always with the autonomy of theConstituency Associations.

2. MEMBERSHIP

The membership of the Association shall consist of allmembers in good standing of Provincial Progressive

Conservative Constituency Associations situated within theProvince of Alberta and members in good standing of theProgressive Conservative Youth of Alberta, all of whom musthold an official membership card in the ProgressiveConservative Association of Alberta.



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3. DELEGATES

The delegates entitled to vote at General Meetings and AnnualGeneral Meetings of the Association shall be members in goodstanding and shall consist of the following:

(a) The Executive Committee of the Association

(b) Fifteen (15) delegates from each Alberta ProvincialConstituency Association and fifteen (15) delegatesfrom each Federal Conservative Party of CanadaConstituency Association situated within theProvince of Alberta; the said delegates must include

a minimum of three (3) youth delegates from eachconstituency. The age for youth delegates shall bedefined according to the constitution of theProgressive Conservative Youth of Alberta. Alldelegates are to be chosen in such a manner as theConstituency Association may decide. Each delegateshall be a resident of the Constituency. If theSecretary of the Association has not received the

names of the delegates from the Constituency one(1) week before any meeting of this Association, thenthe first fifteen (15) members who are residents ofthe Constituency and who have registered from eachProvincial Constituency and the first fifteen (15)members who are residents of the Constituency andwho have registered from each Federal ConservativeParty of Canada Constituency Association shall be

delegates.

(c) Twenty (20) youth delegates appointed by theProgressive Conservative Youth of Alberta, and two(2) youth delegates from every Alberta provincialgovernment accredited post-secondary educationinstitution on which a Provincial Progressive

Conservative campus association exists providedthere shall be no more than twenty (20)post-secondary campus Associations for thispurpose unless otherwise approved by the ExecutiveCommittee of the Progressive ConservativeAssociation of Alberta. In the event of a dispute, theExecutive Committee shall determine what is a



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recognized association for this purpose and thedecision shall be final.

(d) All Conservative Party of Canada Members ofParliament representing Alberta Constituencies, andall Progressive Conservative Members of theLegislative Assembly of Alberta, and ProgressiveConservative candidates nominated subsequent tothe most recent Provincial General Election.

(e) Former Progressive Conservative Members of theLegislative Assembly of Alberta.

(f) Past Presidents of the Progressive ConservativeAssociation of Alberta.

(g) Members of the Alberta P.C. Fund Committee notto exceed fifteen (15) from Northern Alberta, andfifteen (15) from Southern Alberta and all regionalfund-raising chairmen not to exceed five (5). Thesedelegates will be chosen by the Officers in

consultation with the Vice President of Finance.

(h) Fifteen (15) members of the Provincial CampaignCommittee as determined by the Officers.

Only delegates shall be entitled to vote at meetings of theAssociation, and each delegate shall vote once, irrespective ofthe number of offices held by such delegate.

4. GENERAL MEETINGS OF THE ASSOCIATION

Annual General Meetings shall be held not more than eighteen(18) months apart. Additional General Meetings shall be heldwhenever deemed advisable by the Executive Committee. Inthe event that a Provincial or Federal Election shall make the

holding of an Annual General Meeting inconvenient, theExecutive Committee may extend the time between meetingsup to a maximum of twenty-four (24) months. Failure to do sowill not invalidate a meeting otherwise properly constituted.



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5. OFFICERS

The Officers of the Association shall be:

(a) President

(b) Five Vice Presidents; one from Calgary, one fromEdmonton, one from Southern Alberta outside ofCalgary, one from Northern Alberta outside ofEdmonton, and one from Central Alberta.

(c) Six other Vice Presidents, each of whom shall be

Chairmen of the following standing committees:

(i) Finance South

(ii) Finance North

(iii) Policy and Resolutions

(iv) Organization

(v) Communications

(vi) Outreach

(d) Budget Director

(e) Treasurer

(f) Secretary



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6. OFFICERS

(a) The President, Calgary Vice President, EdmontonVice President, Southern Vice President, NorthernVice President, Central Vice President, VicePresident Policy and Resolutions, Vice PresidentCommunications, Vice President Outreach,Treasurer and Secretary shall be elected for twoyear terms at the Annual General Meeting of theAssociation. The first five of these positions wouldbe filled at one AGM with the remaining six filled atthe next AGM. Vacancies between Annual Meetings

shall be filled by appointment by the ExecutiveCommittee. The Vice President Finance South andVice President Finance North, and Vice PresidentOrganization, and Budget Director, shall beappointed by the Executive Committee inconsultation with the Leader.

(b) In the event of more than one person being

nominated for an office, voting for that office shall beby secret ballot. Selection of each candidate shall bemade on a successive basis until one candidate hasreceived a majority of the votes present.

(c) The function of the Officers shall be to carry on theday to day business of the Association according tothe direction given by the Executive Committee from

time to time.

(d) A quorum of a meeting of the Officers shall beeight (8).



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7. EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

There shall be an Executive Committee which shall have thepower to conduct the affairs of the Association betweenmeetings of the Association and to appoint such honoraryofficers of the Association as the Executive Committeeconsiders advisable. The Executive Committee shall consist ofthe following members:

(a) The Officers of the Association, the Leader or ActingLeader, and the immediate Past President of theAssociation.

(b) Regional Directors are to represent each ProvincialConstituency within the Regional Area. The RegionalArea for each Regional Director will be established,and may be varied from time to time, by theExecutive Committee. Each Regional Director shallbe elected for a two year term at an Annual GeneralMeeting of the Association by the delegates from theRegional Area which are to be represented. Northern

Regional Directors shall be elected at every secondAnnual General Meeting of the Association.Southern Regional Directors shall be elected at everysecond Annual General Meeting of the Association inyears alternating with the election of NorthernRegional Directors. Vacancies between AnnualGeneral Meetings shall be filled by the ExecutiveCommittee, with the appointee residing in the

Regional Area to be represented. In the event of anydispute as to the election, appointment orqualification of any Regional Director the disputeshall be resolved by the Executive Committee whosedecision shall be final.

(c) Six (6) members of the Progressive ConservativeYouth of Alberta designated by the Executive of the

said Progressive Conservative Youth of Alberta.

(d) Two (2) persons (not including the Leader) torepresent the Alberta Progressive Conservative MLAsto be elected by the Caucus.

(e) All Past Presidents of the Association shall be invited



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as ex officiomembers, but shall not be entitled tovote, except that the immediate Past President of theAssociation shall be entitled to vote.

(f) The Executive Committee shall have power toconduct and direct the affairs and functions of theAssociation between Annual General Meetings andmay do so directly or through delegation or both.Such powers shall (without limitation) include thepower to provide for, establish, maintain, anddetermine officers and directors for, a non-profitcorporation or society and delegation to it of suchpowers and functions as are required by law to be,

or ought to be, performed by or through such acorporate body.

8. MEETINGS OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

The Executive Committee shall meet at the call of thePresident. Notice of such meeting shall be given by written

notice mailed or electronically transmitted at least seven (7)days before the date set for the meeting.

In the event of the neglect or refusal of the President to call ameeting of the Executive Committee, then such meeting maybe called by any of Calgary, Edmonton, Southern, Central, orNorthern Vice Presidents or in the event of the neglect orrefusal of the President and any of the Vice Presidents to call

a meeting of the Executive Committee, then such a meetingmay be called by three or more members of the ExecutiveCommittee. Notice of such meeting shall be given by registeredletter at least fourteen (14) days before the date set for themeeting.

A quorum shall be twelve (12) Executive Committee members.

The President or, in the Presidents absence, any of the electedVice Presidents, shall be the Chairman of the ExecutiveCommittee. The Chairman of any meeting shall not have avote except in the case of a tie vote when the Chairman shallcast one vote to break the tie.



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9. DUTIES OF OFFICERS

(a) The President shall preside over all Annual GeneralMeetings, and General Meetings, and meetings of theExecutive Committee, and meetings of Officers, andshall have general responsibility as the ExecutiveHead of the Association.

(b) Any of the Calgary, Edmonton, Southern, Central orNorthern Vice Presidents shall act for the Presidentin all cases of absence or inability or unwillingnessto act. The five regional Vice Presidents, shall,together with the President and the Vice President

Organization, be responsible for establishing activeConstituency Associations in every ProvincialConstituency.

(c) The Treasurer shall keep an accurate record andaccounting of all funds related to the generaloperations of the Association.

(d) The Secretary shall be responsible for recording theminutes of all Executive Committee meetings,Annual General and General Meetings, sendingnotices as required and maintaining an up-to-datemailing list of all members and volunteer workers.

(e) The Vice Presidents Finance, North and South, shallprovide funds for the operations of the Association

(as distinguished from Constituency requirements).

(f) The Vice President Policy and Resolutions shall beresponsible for:

(i) organizing the receipt and review ofresolutions at the Annual GeneralMeeting of the Association;

(ii) organizing Policy Conferences, researchand library facilities, and

(iii) that the Vice President Policy andResolutions shall form a committee,consisting of the Policy Vice Presidents



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of not less than 10% of the provincialconstituencies, for the purpose ofestablishing the agenda for the AnnualPolicy Conference.

(g) The Vice President Organization shall assist theLeader between election campaigns in establishingProvincial Constituency organizations through thePresident, the Calgary, Edmonton, Southern,Central, Northern Vice Presidents, and the RegionalDirectors.

(h) The Vice President Communications shall be

responsible for:

(i) internal communications within theParty through the utilization of anewsletter or such othercommunications as may be deemedadvisable to assure the members of theAssociation are adequately informed as

to the various activities of theAssociation and its affiliateorganizations.

(ii) communications through the variousnews media and to the voters of Albertaso as to publicize and promote theactivities of the Association, and its

elected representatives.

(iii) to coordinate the activities of any publicrelations and advertising programswhich may be carried on from time totime.

(i) The Vice President Outreach shall be responsible for

outreach programs of the Progressive ConservativeAssociation of Alberta.

(j) The Executive Director shall be appointed by theLeader in consultation with the ExecutiveCommittee. The Executive Director may also serve asVice-President Organization. The Executive Director



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shall have general responsibility for maintenance,supervision and operation of offices, staff andfacilities for the conduct of the Associations affairsand functions.

10. ANNUAL FINANCIAL REPORT

30 days prior to any Annual General Meeting, the Associationshall prepare and submit to the President of eachConstituency Association, a financial report consisting of:

(a) a general summary of its transactions

and affairs during that year, includingall trust or foundation funds, itsrevenues and the application of itsexpenditures during the previous year,and

(b) an audited balance sheet of its accountsand financial transactions, including

any trust or foundation funds duringthat year.

11. RULES OF PROCEDURE

Roberts Rules of Order shall govern the proceedings of theAssociation, the Executive Committee and Committees, as far

as they may be applicable without coming into conflict withthe constitution.

12. PROVINCIAL LEADERSHIP ELECTIONS

(a) A leadership election shall be called when:

(i) The Leader delivers to the President ofthe Association his notice of intent toresign as leader;

(ii) The position of leader otherwise becomesvacant;



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(iii) Pursuant to section 13 herein aleadership election is required as aresult of a ballot taken at an AnnualGeneral Meeting.

(b) In the event the Leader is unable to continue asLeader, the caucus shall select an interim Leaderuntil the leadership election process is completed.

(c) Eligible voters shall be:

(i) Canadian citizens;

(ii) Of the full age of 16 years;

(iii) Ordinarily resident in Alberta for at leastsix (6) months immediately prior to thevoting date;

(iv) Members in good standing of aProvincial Progressive Conservative

Constituency Association.

(d) In the event of a leadership election the Associationshall hold the election by a direct vote of eligiblevoters according to terms and conditions containedherein and any other terms and conditions not inconflict therewith adopted by the ExecutiveCommittee.

(e) A candidate for leadership election shall be amember in good standing of the ProgressiveConservative Association of Alberta at the date offiling nomination papers.

(f) Voting Procedures

(i) Voting shall occur on a day determinedby the Executive Committee for a period often (10) consecutive hours. A second ballot,if necessary, shall occur fourteen (14) dayslater for ten (10) consecutive hours.

(ii) Each eligible voter shall have theopportunity to cast their vote from



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within the boundaries of their ProvincialConstituency.

(iii) A candidate who receives more than halfthe total valid ballots cast shall be

declared the elected leader of theAssociation.

(g) Second Ballot Rules

(i) If there are three candidates and nocandidate receives more than half of thevalid ballots cast on the first ballot, a

second ballot shall be held between thetwo candidates who receive the mostvotes.

(ii) If there are more than three (3)candidates, and no one (1) candidatereceives more than half the total validballots cast on the first ballot a secondballot shall be held. Only the three (3)candidates who receive the most votesshall be included in the second ballot.

(iii) The second ballot shall be decided by apreferential ballot in which eligiblevoters shall indicate both a first andsecond choice. The ballot paper will bevalid if only one choice is selected.

(iv) The candidate who receives more thanhalf the total valid ballots cast as thefirst choice, shall be declared the electedleader of the Association.

(v) If no candidate obtains more than halfthe total valid ballots as first choice, the

candidate who receives the lowest numberof first choice votes shall be eliminated. Thesecond choices of those who voted for theeliminated candidate shall be transferred tothe other two candidates and counted inorder to determine the winner.



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13. LEADERSHIP REVIEW

At the second Annual General Meeting of the Associationfollowing a Provincial General Election where the Party formsthe Government or at the first Annual General Meeting of theAssociation following a Provincial General Election where theParty does not form the Government, a secret ballot onleadership review shall be held with the following Delegatesentitled to vote:

(a) The Executive Committee of the Association.

(b) Fifteen (15) Delegates from each Provincial

Constituency Association.

(c) Twenty (20) Delegates appointed by the ProgressiveConservative Youth of Alberta, and two (2) Delegatesfrom every Alberta provincial government accreditedpost-secondary education institution on which aProvincial Conservative campus association exists,provided there shall be no more than twenty (20)

post-secondary campus Associations for this purpose,unless otherwise approved by the Executive Committeeof the Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta.In the event of a dispute, the Executive Committee shalldetermine what is a recognized association for thispurpose and the decision shall be final.

(d) All Conservative Party of Canada Members of

Parliament representing Alberta Constituencies.

(e) All Progressive Conservative Members of theLegislative Assembly of Alberta.

(f) The most recently nominated ProgressiveConservative candidates for Alberta Provincialelections.

(g) Former Progressive Conservative Members of theLegislative Assembly of Alberta.

(h) Past Presidents of the Progressive ConservativeAssociation of Alberta.



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(i) Members of the Alberta P.C. Fund Committee notto exceed fifteen (15) from Northern Alberta, andfifteen (15) from Southern Alberta and all regionalfund-raising chairmen not to exceed five (5). Thesedelegates will be chosen by the Officers inconsultation with the Vice President of Finance.

(j) Fifteen (15) members of the Provincial CampaignCommittee as determined by the Officers.

Each delegate shall vote only once, irrespective of the numberof offices held by such delegate.

The Ballot shall contain the question: Do you wish aProvincial Leadership Election to be called? If a majority ofballots are answered in the affirmative, the ExecutiveCommittee shall forthwith proceed to call such ProvincialLeadership Election.

14. CONSTITUENCY ASSOCIATIONS

(a) For the purpose of this Constitution, a ConstituencyAssociation shall be defined as the association whichexisted on the date of the most recent generalelection preceding the scheduled date of the GeneralMeeting, Annual General Meeting or ProvincialLeadership Election, as the case may be.

(b) Nomination of Candidates

(i) A nomination meeting shall be held byeach Provincial Constituency Associationto select its candidate for the nextprovincial election.

(ii) The period of time when nomination

meetings shall be held will bedetermined by the Leader and theExecutive Committee.

(iii) To be eligible to vote at a nominationmeeting of a Provincial ConstituencyAssociation, a person must be a



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Canadian citizen; of the full age of 16years; ordinarily resident in theProvincial Constituency and a memberof a Provincial Progressive ConservativeAssociation.

(iv) Reasonable public notice of the time,date and location of each nominationmeeting shall be given by eachProvincial Constituency Association, andthe nomination process must be fair,open and democratic.

(v) A person seeking to contest anomination is not required to reside inthe Provincial Constituency.

(vi) A candidate who has been dulynominated shall be approved by theLeader and the Executive Committeeand officially endorsed as a candidate of

the Association if such approval is in thebest interests of the Association.

(c) Dispute Resolution

Any dispute or other matter in question betweencandidates for nomination for a ProvincialConstituency, or in respect of the nomination

process arising under, out of, in connection with, orin relation to the nomination of a candidate or acandidates qualification or disqualification before orafter nomination, shall be resolved pursuant to thefollowing process:

(i) The dispute or matter shall besubmitted to the chairperson of the

Provincial Constituency AssociationsNomination Committee (the NominationCommittee) for a ruling, whoimmediately shall call a meeting of theNomination Committee to rule on thedispute or matter. Such ruling shall be



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rendered by the Nomination Committeewithin seventy-two (72) hours ofsubmission to the chairperson of theNomination Committee.

(ii) If the Nomination Committee is unable orfails to make a ruling within seventy-two(72) hours, or if either party to thedispute disagrees with the ruling of theNomination Committee, the dispute maybe immediately submitted to arbitrationfor determination pursuant to theprovisions of theArbitration Act of

Alberta, R.S.A. 2000, c.A-43, pursuant tothe following procedures:

a. The Nomination Committee or oneof the disputing parties shallimmediately after ruling by theNomination Committee or expiry ofthe 72-hour period without a ruling

having occurred notify the Presidentof the Progressive ConservativeAssociation of Alberta of the disputeor disagreement.

b. If a ruling by the NominationCommittee has issued but noneof the disputing parties notify thePresident within 48 hours of theNomination Committee ruling beingprovided to the disputing parties, theNomination Committee ruling shallbe final and binding on thedisputing parties and theNomination Committee.

c. The President of the Progressive

Conservative Association ofAlberta and in his or her absencethe Vice President Organizationshall, as soon as possible afterbeing notified of the dispute,



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appoint a single arbitrator todecide the dispute.

d. The arbitrator shall not be amember of the NominationCommittee or the ProvincialConstituency Association fromwhich the dispute originates; butshall be a member in good standingof the Progressive ConservativeAssociation of Alberta.

e. Upon his or her selection, the

arbitrator shall contact thedisputing parties and shall advisethem of his or her appointment andrequest submissions in writing fromthe parties within seventy-two (72)hours.

f. The submissions in writing shallbe in a form satisfactory to thearbitrator and shall includesummaries of the relevant factsand argument.

g. The arbitrator shall not be boundby formal rules of evidence orprocedure and may acceptsubmissions of fact and arguments

in a manner deemed by thearbitrator to be reasonable andappropriate in the circumstances.The arbitrator will have power todetermine the dispute, whatever itsnature, including determiningquestions of meaning, intent andreasonableness of nomination rules

themselves and their compliancewith the constitution of theProgressive Conservative Associationof Alberta, and the power to directchanges to the nomination rules.



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h. Upon receipt of facts andargument, the arbitrator mayrequest further submissions ifdeemed appropriate.

i. When the arbitrator has receivedsubmissions of fact andargument deemed sufficient byhim or her, the arbitrator shallso advise the parties and shalldeliver a decision in writingdetermining the dispute withinone (1) week of so advising theparties, which decision shall befinal and binding on thedisputing parties, the NominationCommittee and the ProvincialConstituency Association.

j. All fees and costs of the arbitrationshall be in the discretion of the

arbitrator. The arbitrator may inhis or her discretion direct that aportion of such fees and costs bepaid by the ProgressiveConservative Association of Albertain circumstances in which theProgressive ConservativeAssociation of Alberta has elected

to make submissions to thearbitrator.

k. The arbitrator may at his or heroption require that security beposted in respect of payment forfees and disbursements.

l. The candidates for nominationupon filing nomination paperswill be deemed to have agreed,and the Nomination Committeeand the Provincial ConstituencyAssociation, on appointment ofthe Nomination Committee, will



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(g) The Constituency Association is responsible for its ownoperations, costs and expenses including withoutlimitation costs and expenses incurred in respect ofnominations of candidates for the constituency; and

nothing herein shall impose (nor shall there be) anyliability or obligation upon the Progressive ConservativeAssociation of Alberta to pay or contribute to costs orexpenses of the Constituency Association. TheConstituency Association has no right or authority to bindthe Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta to anycontract or other obligation. The Constituency Associationmust complete all filings and reports required to be made

by constituency associations with the Chief ElectoralOffice under the Elections Actand the Election Financesand Contributions Disclosure Act.

15. AMENDMENTS

This Constitution may be amended at a General Meeting by asimple majority vote at a General Meeting if Notice of Motion inwriting of the proposed amendments has been forwarded to the

Secretary of the Association at least sixty (60) days before the saidmeeting is held. Upon receipt of any such Notice of Motion, theSecretary shall be responsible for forthwith notifying themembership of the Association of the proposed amendment.

16. COMING INTO EFFECT OF THIS CONSTITUTION

(a) This Constitution shall come into effect upon being

adopted by an Annual Meeting of the Association.

(b) Amendments to this Constitution shall come intoeffect at the close of the Annual Meeting of theAssociation at which the amendments are adopted.

Certified as a true copy of the Constitution of the

Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta as amended

November 7, 2009.This document UPDATES AND REPLACES the constitution

revised and adopted October 4, 2008.

*SIGNED ORIGINAL ON FILE *SIGNED ORIGINAL ON FILE

William E. Smith Courtney Day(PRESIDENT) (SECRETARY)



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SCHEDULE A

LOCAL CONSTITUENCYPROGRESSIVECONSERVATIVE ASSOCIATION NOMINATION RULES

ROLE:The LOCAL CONSTITUENCYProgressive ConservativeAssociation, as founded on________________________, is responsibleto its membership to provide the rules and procedures by whichthe Association's Candidate will be selected to run for the office ofmember of the Legislative Assembly from LOCAL CONSTITUEN-CY. The Constituency Association has authorized its ExecutiveCommittee to establish a Nomination Committee to give effect tosuch responsibility.

NOMINATION COMMITTEE

ROLE:The Nomination Committee is responsible to theExecutive Committee and through it to the members to pro-vide the policies, rules and procedures whereby a member ofthe Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta (PCAA) isnominated as a candidate for election as the Member of the

Legislative Assembly forLOCAL CONSTITUENCY. TheNomination Committee shall:

1. Create a process that is open, fair and democratic asrequired by the Constitution of the PCAA.

2. Provide a method to monitor and assess all aspects ofthe process and to authorize those to whom functions

have been assigned to take such action as may berequired.

RULES OF PROCEDURE

NOMINATION COMMITTEE

As part of its role and responsibility the Nomination

Committee will approve the following procedures:

1. Provide for reasonable public notice to members andthe general public of the nomination process inaccordance with the Constitution, including theboundaries of the Constituency, which shall at aminimum include the following:


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(i) The public notice shall be placed in localnewspaper and shall be of at least 41/2 X 3 1/2 in size and of a displaytype of advertisement so as to provide

reasonable notice to the general public;

(ii) The public notice shall provide for aperiod of not less than seven (7) days ormore than fourteen (14) days betweenthe date of the appearance of the publicnotice and the close of nominations;

(iii) The public notice shall provide for aperiod of not less than seven (7) days ormore than fourteen (14) days from theclose of nominations to the date of thenomination election.

2. Appoint a Returning Officer and such other persons toperform such functions as appear to the Committee tobe required and necessary.

3. Provide terms and conditions and establish democraticstandards by which candidates are to conduct theircampaigns.

4. Establish rules under which membership cards andmembership lists are made available to the candidates.

5. Be reasonably available to those people who areinterested in becoming candidates and to provide tothem the information that is required to become acandidate.

6. Be reasonably available to candidates and their agentsfor the purpose of providing memberships andexplaining rules and procedures.

7. Provide nominated candidates with the names ofmembers of the Nomination Committee and theircontact information, name of Constituency AssociationPresident and contact information, and name ofReturning Officer and contact information and details ofthe North, East, South and West boundaries, including


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15. Communication Protocol shall be as follows:

i) communications with the NominationCommittee shall be through the Chair or

his/her designate as identified by theChair;

ii) communications with the nominatedcandidates shall be through thecandidate or his/her appointed agent;

iii) communications relating to voting andelection procedure at the NominationMeeting shall be through the ReturningOfficer;

iv) final results of the Nomination Meetingshall be communicated by the PresidentofLOCAL CONSTITUENCYProgressive Conservative Association;

v) communication with media relating tonomination process or relating toNomination Meeting shall be theresponsibility of the chair of theNomination Committee;

vi) communications with the media relatingto specific campaign of nominated

candidate shall be the responsibility ofnominated candidate or appointmentagent;

vii) no signs, brochures or otheradvertisement promoting a nominatedcandidate shall be permitted in thevenue for Nomination Meeting or within

50 metres of the entrance to the venue.At no time shall any promotion of anominated candidate impede orintimidate the access of participants tothe Nomination Meeting.

16. Make further rules and directives, as required, to deal


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- Be a Canadian citizen;

- Be at least eighteen (18) years of age;

- Have been continuously resident in Albertafor six (6) months; and

- Provide evidence of eligibility satisfactory tothe Nominating Committee.

3. A candidate shall be nominated by submittingnomination papers (Form B Nominations Form) signedby a minimum of 25 current members of theProgressive Conservative Association ofLOCALCONSTITUENCYwho are eligible to vote in thenomination, to the Nomination Committee Chair ordesignate before the filing deadline of______________________ together with a non-refundabledeposit in an amount set by the Association.

4. The non-refundable deposit shall be an amount not

exceeding $500.00 so as not to deter candidateswishing to become a nominated candidate.

5. To be eligible as a candidate, the candidate must signhis or her acceptance of these Nomination Rules (FormC Candidates Acceptance of all Nomination Rules)when filing his or her nomination papers.

6. When filing nomination papers, each candidate shall, inwriting, appoint one person to act as that candidate'sagent, who must be a member of the PCAA, (Form D Candidate Appointment of Agent). Such agent shall, onbehalf of the candidate, obtain memberships for sale asis hereinafter provided for and shall also represent thecandidate at any meetings of the Nomination Committeeto which the candidate is invited. Documents delivered

to the Agent shall be taken as delivered to thecandidate. Notices and documents may be deliveredpersonally or by facsimile transmission to theNomination Committee Chair or designate.

7. Upon submission of Form B and following theconfirmation that persons signing this form are


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members of the Progressive Conservative Association ofthe LOCAL CONSTITUENCYand the submission ofForms C and D and payment of non-refundable deposit,the candidate shall be issued a current list of members

of the Association.

8. Any candidate wishing to withdraw prior to thebeginning of balloting may do so by written submissionto the Nomination Committee Chair or to the ReturningOfficer. A candidate cannot withdraw with the requestthat the candidate's votes be assigned to anothercandidate (Form E Candidate Withdrawal).

9. Where the Nomination Committee deems that acandidate is in substantial breach of any of theseNomination Rules, the Nomination Committee has theauthority to disqualify that candidate from continuingto seek the nomination.

10. To be eligible as a candidate, a candidate must agree tothe submission of any dispute or other matter in

question between candidates for nomination or inrespect of the nomination process arising under, or inconnection with, or in relation to the nomination of acandidate or a candidates qualifications, ordisqualification before or after the nomination toarbitration pursuant to the Constitution of the PCAA bysigning Form F - Submission to Arbitration.

11. The Nomination Committee shall submit any dispute ormatter relating to the nomination process to arbitrationpursuant to the process set out in the Constitution ofthe PCAA and that such process is accepted in lieu of,and no recourse shall be available to, the Courts for orin respect of any such dispute or matter.

RETURNING OFFICER:

The Returning Officer will:

1. ensure that there is supervision of all activities at andaround the polling place on nomination vote day(s);



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2. attend to registration and determine the eligibility of allvoters and resolve any other dispute that may arise;

3. ensure the balloting is carried on in accordance with

the rules;

4. maintain the integrity of the ballots and voterregistration and eligibility procedures;

5. provide security for the ballot boxes;

6. ensure supervision of the ballot counting and ensurecounting procedures are in accordance with these rules;

7. establish an appeals desk for unresolved challenges;

8. ensure that all voters, volunteers and officials fulfil therequirements of these Nomination Rules;

9. make any required decisions with respect to theconduct of the voting and counting; and

10. appoint deputy returning officers as required andassign their responsibilities.

11. direct and approve the number and location ofscrutineers and supervise the actions of scrutineers asrequired.

12. approve the form of the ballot.

13. supervise the security of ballots before, during and afterthe vote.

VOTER ELIGIBILITY:

As defined in the Constitution of the Progressive Conservative

Association of Alberta an eligible voter shall be:

- a Canadian citizen;

- of the full age of 16 years;

- ordinarily resident in theLOCAL CONSTITUENCY; and



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- a member of the Progressive ConservativeAssociation of Alberta.

Voters must produce:

1. A current membership card in the ProgressiveConservative Association of Alberta:

- membership card shall not bear anycandidate identification.

2. Must produce two pieces of identification, one of whichshould be a photo I.D., indicating residency within theconstituency satisfactory to the Returning Officer suchas:

- drivers licence

- passport

- utility or phone bill

- automobile or insurance pink card

- Alberta health card

- social insurance card

- union card

- student card

3. Voters whose eligibility as Canadian citizens ischallenged will be required to show evidence ofCanadian citizenship such as:

- citizenship card

- birth certificate

- passport

4. If challenged, proof of age.



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BALLOTS:

1. Only persons who are eligible to vote and have currentvalid PCAA memberships and have had their credentials

verified shall be entitled to obtain a ballot.

2. Candidates names shall be listed on the ballots bysurname, followed by first name, the order to be drawnby lot, or written in on a blank ballot in order ofpreference.

3. The voter's membership card shall be marked toindicate receipt of a ballot at the time the ballot isdelivered to the voter.

4. The voter shall deposit his or her own ballot in theballot box.

5. No voter shall deposit more than one ballot.

6. If there are three (3) or more candidates the ballots

shall be marked in a preferential manner, numberingthe candidates in order of preference, 1 being the firstchoice. A ballot shall not be invalid by reason only of itsshowing one choice or clearly designated preference forless than the full slate of candidates.

7. Ballot counting will be under the direction of theReturning Officer in a room designated for this purpose.

The Returning Officer will determine the persons whoshall count the ballots. Each candidate shall be entitledto have scrutineer(s) in the counting room asdetermined by the Returning Officer.

8. Scrutineers shall not communicate results.Communication devices will not be permitted in thecounting area.

9. When counting the ballots for three (3) or morecandidates, the first count is a simple separation intopiles of first (1st) choice; the candidate receiving thefewest first choice votes will be dropped and the second(2nd) choice votes of dropped candidate's ballots will becounted and allocated to the remaining candidates. If



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no candidate has a 50% +1 vote following this allocationthe candidate with the fewest votes will be dropped andthat candidate's ballots will be allocated among theremaining candidates according to the highest

preference indicated. This process is repeated until awinner is declared with 50% +1 of the votes of theballots remaining. The President of the Association shallvote if necessary to break the tie.

10. Upon the Returning Officer being satisfied with thecount, the results will be announced by the President ofthe Association.

11. The Decision of the Returning Officer in administeringthe rules relating to the balloting is final.

SCRUTINEERS:

Each candidate is allowed to have scrutineers (number to bedetermined by the Returning Officer) at the credentials tablesand in the counting room but they must not interfere. If a

scrutineer determines a need to challenge they must do itthrough the Returning Officer. Any interference or non-com-pliance will be cause for the Returning Officer to eject thescrutineer.

MEMBERSHIP SALES AND MEMBERSHIP LISTS:

1. Since the nominators must be members of the

Progressive Conservative Association ofLOCALCONSTITUENCY, a prospective candidate maypurchase from the Nomination Chairman up to 100membership books provided that, when doing so, asigned declaration of intention to seek nomination isfiled with the Nomination Chairman and theMemberships are paid for. (Form A)

2. Distribution of membership cards to candidates shall bethrough the Nomination Committee. Once a candidatehas filed nomination papers and has otherwisecomplied with these Nomination Rules as set forthherein, the candidate shall be entitled to obtainmembership cards for sale in the following manner.



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3. The candidate or his/her agent may purchase blankmemberships, in books of 5, from the NominationCommittee. The purchase price will be calculated atthe current membership fee per blank membership to

be paid in advance by cash or certified cheque.

4. The membership stubs must be fully completed, name,address, phone number, email address and status(youth or regular) for the person to whom themembership card was issued.

5. The candidate or agent should turn over to theNomination Committee, all sold memberships and allunsold memberships at a date set by the nominationcommittee

6. Any unsold or voided membership cards will berefunded at the current membership fee per card.

7. Memberships will continue to be sold up until the timeof the closing of the ballot boxes by the LOCAL

CONSTITUENCYat the Nomination meeting.



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FORM B

NOMINATION FORM

We, the undersigned, each of whom declare that he/she is acurrent member in good standing of the ProgressiveConservative Association of Alberta, is a citizen of Canadaand resides within the boundaries of the LOCALCONSTITUENCYConstituency, hereby nominate(candidate), who is seeking the Association nomination as itscandidate in the next Provincial Election.

Name, Address & Postal Code Membership# Signature(Please Print)

1._______________________________ ______________ __________

2._______________________________ ______________ __________

3._______________________________ ______________ __________

4._______________________________ ______________ __________

5._______________________________ ______________ __________

[Sufficient pages should be attached for 25 signatures]



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FORM C

CANDIDATES ACCEPTANCE OF

ALL NOMINATION RULES

I, the undersigned, agree to let my name stand as candidatefor the Progressive Conservative Association ofLOCALCONSTITUENCY. I acknowledge receipt of the foregoingNomination Rules, I have read them and understand them,including the counting procedures described under the head-ing Ballots.

I agree that I will:

- Abide by the said Nomination Rules;

- Abide by the results of the nomination process;

- Abide by the rulings and decisions of the ReturningOfficer;

- Support without reservation the successful nominee;

- Appear on stage with all other Nominees at the time thewinner is announced and support the motion that thedecision of the vote be made unanimous and the ballotsincluding all voting and membership lists as it pertainsto the nomination, be destroyed.

__________________________ __________________________

Witness Nominee

__________________________Address

__________________________ __________________________

Date Business Phone

__________________________Residence Phone

__________________________Fax

__________________________E-mail



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FORM D

CANDIDATE APPOINTMENT OF AGENT

I,_____________________________________________,, acandidate for nomination to represent the ProgressiveConservative Association ofLOCAL CONSTITUENCYinthe next Provincial election, hereby appoint

___________________________________

of ___________________________________(address)

___________________________________(business phone)

___________________________________(residence phone)

___________________________________(fax)

___________________________________(e-mail)

to act as my Agent in accordance with the Nomination Rulesissued by the Nomination Committee of the ProgressiveConservative Association ofLOCAL CONSTITUENCY.

DATED this ____ day of ___________________, 20_____.

I, ___________________________________, accept my appointmentby

________________________________________to act as his/herAgent.



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FORM E

CANDIDATE WITHDRAWAL

I, ________________________________________, a candidate fornomination for the Progressive Conservative Association ofLOCAL CONSTITUENCY, hereby voluntarily withdraw myname from consideration for nomination in the said con-stituency.

DATED at _________o'clock this _____ day of ________, 20_____.

____________________________ __________________________Witness Signature

____________________________Returning Officer



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FORM F

SUBMISSION TO ARBITRATION

I, ________________________________________, a candidate fornomination for the Progressive Conservative Association ofLOCAL CONSTITUENCY, hereby agree that any dispute orother matter in question between candidates for nominationfor the Progressive Conservative Association ofLOCALCONSTITUENCYor in respect of the nomination processarising under, out of, in connection with, or in relation to thenomination of a candidate or a candidates qualification ordisqualification before or after nomination shall be resolvedpursuant to the Arbitration process provided under theConstitution of the Progressive Conservative Association ofAlberta, and that such process is accepted in lieu of, and norecourse shall be available to the Courts, for or in respect ofany such dispute or matter.

DATED at _________o'clock this _____ day of ________, 20_____.

____________________________ __________________________

Witness Signature



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FORM G

NOMINATION PROCESS SUPPORT or

FILE FOR ARBITRATION FORM

I, ________________________________________, the candidateseeking the nomination of the Progressive ConservativeAssociation ofLOCAL CONSTITUENCYam satisfied thenomination held on (DATE) was conducted in accordance withthe Constitution of the PCAA and the Constitution of theProgressive Conservative Association ofLOCALCONSTITUENCYwas a fair and democratic process.

____________________________ __________________________Candidate Signature

____________________________ __________________________Agent Signature

FILE FOR ARBITRATION

I, ________________________________________, the candidateseeking the nomination of the Progressive ConservativeAssociation ofLOCAL CONSTITUENCYam not satisfiedthe nomination held on (DATE) was conducted in accordancewith the Constitution of the PCAA or the Constitution of the

Progressive Conservative Association ofLOCALCONSTITUENCYfor the following reason(s):

_____________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________

and am requesting this matter to be submitted to arbitration.

____________________________ __________________________

Candidate Signature

____________________________ __________________________Agent Signature



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EXPLANATORY NOTES:

The following explanatory notes were adopted by the ExecutiveCommittee of the Association at its meeting held on May 25,2002. Clause (p) was added by a general meeting resolutionpassed November 7, 2009. The 2002 Explanatory Notes wereintended to assist members in interpreting certain terms,which appear in the Constitution, by setting out how theExecutive Committee interprets them. These notes do not formpart of the Constitution.

The Executive Committee interprets the following terms ashaving the following meanings:

(a) Association means the Progressive ConservativeAssociation of Alberta (also known as PCAAandPC Alberta). The Association is a registeredpolitical party under Alberta election laws.

(b) Caucus means the Progressive ConservativeMembers of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta.

(c) Chairman means the person who chairs a meetingor committee.

(d) Constituency Association means a provincialProgressive Conservative Constituency Associationthat is registered with the Chief Electoral Officer, andoperates within an electoral district. Constituency

generally refers to provincial constituencies exceptwhere the context plainly intends reference to federalconstituencies.

(e) "Constitution" means the constitution of theAssociation as amended from time to time, whichcontains fundamental governing principles.

(f) Delegate means a member entitled to vote atmeetings of the Association.

(g) Executive Committee means the Leader orActing Leader, the immediate Past President,the Officers, and the Regional Directors of theAssociation. The primary role of the Executive



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Committee is to support the members of theAssociation in their efforts to achieve theobjects of the Constitution.

(h) Leader means the person chosen by themembers of the Association to be responsiblefor the overall direction of the Association.Nothing in the Constitution purports to bindthe Leader in the capacity of ParliamentaryLeader of the Caucus.

(i) Legislature means the Legislative Assembly ofAlberta.

(j) President means the President of theAssociation. The President will establish theagendas and preside at all meetings of theAssociation to include the Annual GeneralMeeting, General Meetings, and ExecutiveCommittee Meetings. The President will decideall questions of order, announce the results of

all votes and give the casting vote in the case ofa tie at all meetings of the Association. ThePresident must be a member of the AnnualGeneral Meeting Committee, the PolicyConference Committee, and the ProvincialElection Campaign Committee. The President,along with the Provincial Executive Committee,approves the appointment of a standing

committee, sub-committee, or an adhoccommittee. The President works with theExecutive Committee and the ExecutiveDirector to achieve the objects of theAssociation.

(k) The Vice President Finance South, VicePresident Finance North, Budget Director and

Treasurer comprise the Finance Group whichis a standing committee of the Association.

Members of the Association elect the Treasurer.The Executive Committee in consultation withthe Leader appoints the Vice Presidents and theBudget Director. The Finance Group is



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accountable to the Leader. The Finance Groupreceives funds and manages the assets of theAssociation in accordance with the Election Financesand Contributions Disclosure Act.

(l) The five Vice Presidents, one from Calgary, onefrom Edmonton, one from Southern Alberta, onefrom Northern Alberta, and one from CentralAlberta, serve as the liaison between the ExecutiveCommittee and Regional Directors and ConstituencyAssociation Presidents within their geographicregion.

(m) Vice President Organization is usually theExecutive Director of the Association, whose duty itis to achieve the objects of the Association and tooversee its operation in accordance with theConstitution, the Election Finances andContributions Disclosure Act, the Election Act, andthe policies of the Executive Committee which is

chaired by the President. The Executive Director isappointed by and accountable to the Leader. TheVice President Organization is appointed by theExecutive Committee. The two offices may be held bythe same person.

(n) Regional Directors serve as the liaison between theVice Presidents, the Executive Committee, and the

Constituency Association Presidents within theirRegion.

(o) Youth means any member of the Associationas defined according to the Constitution of theProgressive Conservative Youth of Alberta (alsoknown as PCYA).

(p) Policy Steering Committee

1. Responsibilities of the Province-wide Policy SteeringCommittee

a) Facilitate the promotion and maintenance of anongoing policy development process for the Association



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insuring that the policy process shall, at all times, beaccountable to the Associations members;

b) Facilitating, nurturing and supporting Policy

discussions within the Association that will serve as aresource to the Association, the Leader and the ProvincialCaucus;

c) Serving as a means of ongoing communicationamong Association members, constituency associations,the Executive Committee, the Leader and provincialcaucus on Policy issues and matters through use ofmodern communication and consultation methods,programs or technologies; and

d) Encouraging the Party leader and Provincial Caucusto give due consideration to approved Association policywhen developing the party election platform and in theongoing discussion, communication and management ofPolicy issues.

2. Membership of Policy Steering Committee

The membership of the Policy Steering Committee shallinclude at least 2 (two) representatives from each of:provincial caucus, PC Alberta executive or campaigncommittee, constituency association presidents,constituency association VPs policy, 2 PC youth, andissue experts on specific policy matters as deemed

appropriate by the VP Policy and Resolutions.

3. Creation and reporting of Ad Hoc or Sub-committees

The Policy Steering Committee may create various ad-hocor sub-committees to focus on specific issue areas(example: party principles, rural issues, infrastructure,education, health, etc.).

Each committee struck would report to the VP Policy andoperate under specific terms of reference. Thesecommittees would also report back to the Policy SteeringCommittee consistent with their terms of reference.

These committees, if so directed, may hold meetings


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(and/or using other means including Intranet, email, etc.)across the province to discuss and seek input fromAssociation members.

The Policy Steering Committee may also appoint issueexperts on an as-needed basis to the ad-hoc orsub-committees.

4. Reporting by the Policy Steering Committee

The VP Policy shall continue to report to and presentmonthly reports to the Executive Committee on policyactions, committee activities, agenda and initiatives.

The Policy Steering Committee shall also present reportsto the membership at least twice per year and to eachAnnual General Meeting and/or Policy Conference.

More frequent communication and reporting toconstituencies via constituencies VPs Policy or theconstituencies VP Policies intranet may occur as

determined necessary. Ad-hoc reports may also bepresented by the VP Policy or the Policy SteeringCommittee as necessary.

5. Policy Communication

The Policy Steering Committee will have input into theAssociations website disclosure and communications on

policy and will co-ordinate overlapping matters with PCAlberta Vice President Policy and Resolutions relating toresolutions at the Annual General Meeting and theAnnual Policy Conference.

6.Chair of Policy Steering Committee

The Chair of the Policy Steering Committee will be the

Associations VP Policy and Resolutions. The Chair shallbe responsible for ensuring the Policy Steering Committeeand any ad-hoc or sub-committees carry out theirresponsibilities on an ongoing basis.


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CONTACT INFORMATION:

PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE ASSOCIATIONOF ALBERTA

Edmonton (Head) Office

Main Floor, 9825-103 Street NW

Edmonton, Alberta

T5K 2M3

Phone: (780) 423-1624

Fax: (780) 423-1634

Toll Free 1-800-461-4443

email: [email protected]

website: www.albertapc.ab.ca

Calgary (South) Office

340 999 - 8 Street SW

Calgary, Alberta

T2R 1J5

Phone: (403) 244-8528

Fax: (403) 228-1915

Toll Free 1-800-263-3408


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Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta Constitution

Documents

Transcript of Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta Constitution