Which members can nominate and/or vote in ACS elections?
All ‘eligible’ members can participate. That means active or retired Accredited, Full, or Camera Crew members. To be active a member must be financial. Student, Associate and Honorary members are unable to participate in the election.
I don’t want to nominate for any roles, how can I avoid reminder emails and texts?
A: Please open the nomination link, select ‘abstain’ in each of the nomination categories, and then submit. You’ll no longer receive any reminder messages.
I’m interested in actively contributing to the ACS. How can I nominate?
From the beginning of October eligible members can complete and submit an online nomination form. All eligible members will automatically be sent the nomination form by Email and SMS messages.
They will also receive reminder messages through the three-week nomination period.
While an online nomination is the preferred option it is also possible to nominate by completing a standardised form that can be requested from the ACS National Secretary via email.
What roles can I nominate for?
You will need to complete the online nomination form if you wish to be on your branch committee, or stand for branch president or branch delegate to the board – or a combination of all three, if you wish.
If you’re a current committee member or office-bearer in your branch and wish to continue in that role, you’ll still need to nominate.
Nomination Example 1
An eligible member simply wishes to help run local events and assist with branch activities in 2026.
They should nominate for their branch committee only. Each branch can have up to 10 members on their committee.
Nomination Example 2
A member wants to stand to be Branch President, but if they’re unsuccessful, they’re still quite happy to serve on their branch committee.
They should nominate for Branch President and branch committee. Further, they could consider if they might also nominate to be their Branch Delegate to the National Board to contribute at a national level.
Note: The three largest branches (currently NSW, VIC, and QLD) get two delegates each, all other branches get one.
Nomination Example 3
A current Branch President wants to step down at the end of this year, but is keen to continue to contribute to the Society nationally plus support the new Branch President and incoming committee.
They should nominate for Delegate and Branch Committee.
Are there any requirements around nominations?
Yes, apart from being an ‘eligible’ member, all nominees need to submit the names and email addresses of two eligible members of the Society who support their nomination. (A bit like you’d have a nominee and seconder at a formal meeting.)
An additional requirement if you wish to nominate yourself to be your Branch Delegate to the Board is that you must have served at least one year as a member of your branch committee. That is, already have some understanding of the structure of the Society and how it runs.
Each nomination ultimately goes to the National Secretary and may be shared with the relevant Branch Secretary and Branch President for cross-checking as necessary.
If I nominate, how will members voting know anything about me?
When you nominate yourself, you’ll have the option to contribute a brief bio that will be accessible on the election ballot form for your branch. It’s a good idea to pre-write your nomination bio and cut-and-paste into your online nomination form. A good bio should be brief and give voting members an idea of who you are, what you do and why you are nominating.
Why can’t I nominate for other roles like Branch Secretary, or Vice-President or even National President?
The incoming ACS Board will elect the National President, VPs, Secretary, Treasurer, and others at their first Board meeting after the AGM where the results of the election are declared.
The same goes for each of the branches. The incoming branch committee, including President and Delegate(s), will select who fills similar roles at the branch level at their first meeting after the AGM.
Can I change, withdraw or correct my nomination?
If you wish to amend what roles you are nominating for, or make other changes to your nomination, you must do so before the nomination period closes by contacting the ACS National Secretary via e-mail.
