At the Annual Meeting I and the present Chairman will wish to be voted in as Chairman.

Question

I am unhappy with how the Parish Council is currently being run and wish to oppose the present Chairman at the upcoming Annual Meeting.  Is the process vote on the night only or do I need to do anything extra prior to or on the evening such as a explanation why I would be better.

Answer 1

Just a personal view...

Try not to think of it in terms of "oppose" (although I recognise that the reality is often conflict) since this is a rather negative starting point.  Whatever issues have given rise to your dissatisfaction, maybe try and present it as how you will strive to improve matters.

Engage the other councillors (often easier said than done) and see if you can get members of the public to speak in favour of you assuming the chair - "if" your PC facilitates public participation at the Annual meeting.

Bear in mind, the existing chair remains in the chair for the annual meeting and until the vote to continue or replace.  They also have the casting vote in the case of a tie so they start with a small advantage.

Another thing to bear in mind, of course the chair has a degree of influence over the direction of travel, they are NOT a unilateral force of authority.  A PC travelling a less than perfect course is not ONLY the fault of the chair but of ALL councillors too.

Answer 2

Prior to the meeting, you will need to persuade one of your fellow councillors to nominate you and another to second the nomination. If there is more than one candidate duly nominated, it will be up to the members of the council, including those nominated, to vote for their preferred candidate.

Comments

Although there is no provision in Standing Orders I think each candidate should be given say 5 minutes to speak and then answer questions