Voting opened May 4 for Pedernales Electric Cooperative’s Board of Directors election, in which PEC members will elect two directors and vote to recommend to the Board which system should be used for future director elections.  

Ballots, election information and voting instructions were mailed to all members by Election Services Corporation (ESC), an independent company hired by the Cooperative to manage balloting. Co-op members may vote by returning completed ballots to ESC by mail or they can vote online through ESC’s secure website. Mail-in and online voting has to be completed by June 10, and ballots will not be accepted at the Co-op’s offices in order to maintain PEC’s independent position in the election. Members also can vote in person at the PEC Annual Meeting June 18 in Johnson City, where election results will be announced.

Democratic elections are a fundamental component of the cooperative model followed by PEC, giving members a voice in director elections and Co-op direction.

The following six PEC members, listed in the order they will appear on the ballot, were nominated by member petitions to vie for director positions in Board districts 2 and 3:

• District 2 Director: Alan Yore, Cedar Park; William D. (Bill) Boggs, Leander

• District 3 Director: Stephen Thomas, Cedar Park; Kathy Scanlon, Austin; Tom Gress, Cedar Park; Matthew Weldon, Austin

The order of candidates on the ballot was determined by a random drawing conducted by ESC. Also on the ballot this year is a vote of the members to recommend to the Board which system should be used for future director elections. Members are asked to select from the following systems:

• At-large system. Under the current, at-large system, the seven directors reside in different geographical districts. Directors are locally nominated by petition of members within their district but elected by a vote of members from all districts, across the Cooperative. Under this system, all Cooperative members are eligible to vote every year.

• Single-member system. Under a single-member system, each of the seven directors would reside in a different geographical district. They would be nominated and elected locally, by action of only members within their district. Each Cooperative member would normally be eligible to vote every three years, when his or her local director is up for election.

• Hybrid, combination of at-large and single-member system. Under a hybrid system, most directors would be elected locally, by members within their single-member districts. A smaller number would be elected by all members of the Cooperative. Each Cooperative member would normally be eligible to vote every year. This method would require members to approve a change to the Cooperative Articles of Incorporation.

Election information, a link to the voting website, and video clips of candidates presenting their platforms at PEC’s April 28 public forum are available at www.pec.coop.