Board Structure, Election of Presidents and Directors

The American Jersey Cattle Association (AJCA) and National All-Jersey Inc. (NAJ) are each governed by a Board of Directors.

The AJCA Board consists of a President and 12 Directors. The responsibilities of the Board include establishing Association policies and programs, setting fees, authorizing expenditures, hiring the Executive Secretary and Treasurer, and being responsible for the overall well-being of the Association. The active members of the Association elect the President and Directors. A member is considered active when he or she has registered or had transferred to his or her ownership a Jersey animal within the past two (2) years.

The NAJ Board is composed of 11 Directors. Five Directors are elected by the voting members in the District they represent, three Directors are appointed by the AJCA Board, and there are three ex-officio Directors. The ex-officio Directors are the AJCA President and chairs of the AJCA Finance and Development committees. The President is elected from the Board by the Directors. The responsibilities of the NAJ Board are similar to the AJCA Board.

Qualifications

The AJCA Constitution states, “Each Director including the President shall be an active member of the Association who is actively engaged in ownership or management of a recognizable Jersey herd.” In addition, each Director must be a resident of the District from which elected.

The NAJ Constitution states that Directors shall be “members of the American Jersey Cattle Association and who are producer or honorary members of National All-Jersey Inc. . . .” The elected NAJ Directors must reside in the District they represent.

AJCA Nominations

A person meeting the constitutional qualifications can be nominated for either AJCA President or Director. Nominations for President must be made by petition signed by any 30 active members of the Association. Nominations for Director must be made by petition signed by 20 active members residing in the District for which the person seeks to serve as Director. Petitions can be obtained by writing or calling the Executive Secretary. The petitions must be received by the Executive Secretary no later than 65 days in advance of the Annual Meeting.

Terms and Voting. The President is elected for a one-year term at each Annual Meeting. There is no limit on the number of terms a President may serve. Three Directors are elected at each Annual Meeting for a term of four years. A Director can serve two consecutive terms. A former Director is then eligible to serve another term one year after completion of two consecutive terms. If appointed or elected to fill an unexpired Director term, the person shall be eligible for election to serve two, four-year terms after service for the unexpired term is completed.

Voting for President and Directors is by ballot only. All active members of the AJCA, 50 days prior to the Annual Meeting, are eligible to vote. They receive a ballot by mail. The candidate for each position receiving the plurality of votes is elected.

Director Districts. The United States is divided into three Districts. The District boundaries are drawn in geographic regions to provide equal representation based on number of members and participation in AJCA programs. The three Districts are:

• First District: Alabama, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, and West Virginia
• Second District: Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, Wisconsin, and Wyoming;
• Third District: Alaska, Arizona, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Utah and Washington

Directors to be elected by District are as follows:

• A director from the First District;
• A director from the Second District
• A director from the Third District

NAJ Director Nominations

A person meeting the constitutional qualifications can be nominated for one of the five elected NAJ Directors. Nominations for Director must be made by petition signed by 10 voting members residing in the District for which the person seeks to serve as Director. Petitions can be obtained by writing or calling the Executive Secretary. The petitions must be received by the Executive Secretary no later than 60 days in advance of the Annual Meeting.

Terms and Voting. Directors are elected or appointed at the Annual Meeting for a term of four years. There are no term limits. Voting for the elected Directors is by ballot only. All eligible members of NAJ residing in the District for which a Director election is being held, 60 days prior to the Annual Meeting, are eligible to vote. They receive a ballot by mail. The candidate for each position receiving the plurality of votes is elected. The three Directors appointed by the AJCA Board are appointed for a term of four years. The ex-officio members’ terms on the NAJ Board coincide with their AJCA positions.

Director Districts. For the elected Director positions, the United States is divided into five Districts. The District boundaries are drawn in geographic regions based on revenue. District lines are drawn to keep all Districts with close to the same amount of revenue. The five Districts are:

• District 1: Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, Wyoming
• District 2: California, Hawaii
• District 3: Connecticut, Delaware, Indiana, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont
• District 4: Arkansas, Iowa, Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Wisconsin
• District 5: Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia