District Campaigns and Elections FAQ

The DLC Member Agreement needs to be completed.

The committee must nominate at least one candidate for the roles of District Director, Program Quality Director, and Division Director. Two candidates must be selected for Club Growth Director. If the District Leadership Committee does not nominate the required number of candidates for an elective role, the role is considered incomplete on the report and is open for qualified floor candidates to run.

If the DLC does not follow the process outlined in Protocol 9.0, it can invalidate the report. If the report is invalidated, the DLC will continue with the process and deliver an “advisory report” to the District Director. When an advisory report is presented, each candidate will run from the floor.

A qualified candidate is a candidate that meets the qualifications outlined in the District Administrative Bylaws, Article VII (d).

An eligible candidate is a candidate that meets the qualifications outlined in the District Administrative Bylaws Article VII (d) and has been evaluated by the District Leadership Committee for a specific elective office.

A candidate may begin campaigning as soon as they have submitted their Toastmasters International District Leader Agreement and Release Statement, Candidate Biography Form, and photograph to the District Leadership Committee (DLC) or District Director.

The report from the DLC may become invalid, and all candidates will run from the floor.

If the DLC report is invalid, the DLC shall proceed in completing its work and nominate candidates for each role as outlined in Protocol 9.0. The DLC will present their nominated candidates with an advisory report to the District Director. Each nominated candidate will run from the floor.

Prior to the elections, the presenter will state which deadline or requirement was not adhered to by the DLC and as a result an “advisory report” is being presented.

The DLC may begin evaluating candidates as soon as the District Leader Agreement and Release Statement, Candidate Biography Form, and photograph are submitted to the DLC Chair.

No, the DLC Chair is a non-voting member of the DLC. The DLC Chair does not attempt to influence the other members of the committee.

The DLC Chair is not a voting member of the DLC. Therefore, they would not count as an equal representation for a Division.

Yes, the DLC Chair may extend the nomination application deadline. However, the DLC Chair must extend the deadline for all roles. The extension cannot limit applications for a specific role(s). The DLC Chair must set a reasonable extension deadline that provides the DLC enough time to evaluate all applicants in time to deliver the DLC report to the District Director no later than six (6) weeks prior to elections.

No. Once the deadline to accept nominations has passed, consideration for nomination is not available unless the DLC Chair later extends the deadline for all elective roles. The decision to extend the nomination deadline is at the discretion of the DLC Chair.

If the initial deadline of November 1 was met, the District Director may appoint a replacement DLC Chair. The report from the DLC will remain as a valid report.

The DLC may evaluate candidates for additional elected roles if desired. Since the other District roles are not considered elective leader roles, floor candidates may run during elections. The seven (7) day requirement to submit their intent to run does not apply. District Administrative Bylaws, Article VII (e)

A candidate may apply to the DLC for multiple roles; the DLC's responsibility is to nominate the candidate for the best role. A candidate may only run for a maximum of two roles either from DLC nomination or as a floor candidate.

All Division Director roles are considered the same role. The (DLC) may nominate one (1) or more Division Directors for a single Division. The Division Director candidate only needs to be evaluated one time to be considered for all Division Director roles in the District. Nominated Division Director candidates may also run from the floor for other Divisions provided they submit their intent to run at least seven (7) days in advance of the elections.

Protocol 9.0 requires two Club Growth Director candidates to be nominated. If only one candidate is nominated, the requirements of Protocol 9.0 have not been met, and the role will be considered incomplete on the DLC report and will list the single nominated candidate along with a disclosure the nominations are incomplete. The nomination from the DLC is considered "advisory" allowing qualified floor candidates to run for the role. The advised nominated candidate is also considered a floor candidate. Each candidate must submit their intent to run from the floor to the District Director no later than seven (7) days prior to the election.

If there is still time, the DLC Chair may reopen the opportunity for all candidates to submit their application to the DLC to be considered for all roles. The DLC must evaluate all candidates for all leadership roles.

Prior to the close of the application period set by the DLC Chair, the DLC should seek candidates and encourage them to apply.

If a tie occurs, the DLC will continue discussions and re-vote until a majority is reached. If a majority is cannot be reached, the candidate cannot be nominated by the DLC.

The report remains valid, as the DLC has completed its task in nominating the required number of candidates for the role. Only candidates that were evaluated by the DLC for the vacant position may run from the floor for the positions.

If there are no other candidates that were evaluated by the DLC for the role, the role will remain vacant and will be filled by the incoming District Executive Committee based on the recommendation of the incoming District Director. The process is outlined in the District Administrative Bylaws, Article VII (g).

The DLC may reconvene to determine if a previously evaluated candidate who was not selected initially can be nominated.

If there are no additional candidates that were previously evaluated, and there is still time, the DLC Chair may reopen or extend the application period. However, all applications must be considered for all desired roles. The DLC must have the ability to evaluate interested candidates and deliver their report to the District Director no later than six (6) weeks prior to the elections.

Yes, however, the candidate is limited to run for roles they were evaluated for by the District Leadership Committee (DLC) or roles they qualify to run for that are also incomplete on the DLC report. The candidate must have also submitted their intent to run from the floor for any elective role at least seven (7) days prior to the election.

Upon approval of a new Division(s), candidates who have gone through the DLC interview process, for any Division, are eligible to run from the floor for the new Division(s).

If there are no candidates available, the role is filled as a vacancy outlined in the District Administrative Bylaws, Article VII (g). The incoming District Executive Committee will fill the role based on the recommendation from the incoming District Director.

Candidates who are serving as current District leaders (Program Quality Director, Division or Area Director) shall not be prevented from fulfilling their role. The candidates cannot use this as an opportunity to promote their campaign.

All candidates may participate as a speech contest official at the Division or Area level at the discretion of the District Director. However, the District Director must ensure that each candidate has an equal opportunity to participate. No candidates may participate in speech contests at the District-level contest.

To find helpful resources for the DLC, visit the Elections Toolkit webpage. You may also want to review Protocol 9.0.