Who will follow Tim? Nominations open for IFA elections
Nominations for candidates to run in the IFA Presidential elections are open. They will close on Tuesday, September 12, at 12 noon.
IFA National Returning Officer Brian Rushe announced that the nominations process is underway for the positions of President, Deputy President and for three of the four Regional Chair positions.
Candidates running for President and Deputy President require a nomination from their own County Executive and five other County Chairs. Candidates running for Regional Chair require a nomination from their own County Executive. National Returning Officer Brian Rushe said a robust democratic process is a cornerstone of IFA. “All our Branch Officers, County Officers and National Officers are elected by farmers. The President and Deputy President of IFA are elected directly by members. The opening of nominations is the beginning of that process,” he said.
“In an era where we have lots of individuals and new groupings claiming to speak for farmers, and others claiming to know the minds of farmers, having a transparent and fully democratic process was never more important,” he said. Election debates will take place throughout October, with voting beginning in November. The National Count will take place in December. A schedule of the meetings and the voting timetable will be finalised shortly.
As decided by the IFA National Council in July, the voting process for President and Deputy President will be a hybrid model. Each member will receive their ballot papers in the post. They will have the option of bringing their ballot to their branch AGM or returning it by post.
Brian Rushe said it is important that we make it as convenient as possible for members to use their vote. “The new hybrid system will allow members to bring their ballot to their branch AGM or to return it by post.”
The President, Deputy President and Regional Chair will each be elected for a maximum of one four-year term. Nomination papers are available at nationalreturningofficer@ifa.ie.
Those elected will take up their positions at the 2024 Annual General Meeting.