Election Resources

Papers of Candidacy (due March 29): link
Campaign Corner: link
Appointed Office Position Tips from the 2022-2023 GJCL Officer Board: link

Candidates Hub: link

Office Information

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There are two types of positions: elected and appointed. ​

• The elected offices are President, First Vice President, Second Vice President, Parliamentarian, and cretary. ​

  • ​The President serves as the leader at all state/board meetings, is the primary representative of the GJCL, and appoints all necessary committees. It is strongly advised that you run for president if and only if you have a great deal of JCL experience with your local chapter, state chapter, or (preferably) a combination thereof.

  • The First Vice President is in charge of obtaining publicity for GJCL, as well as maintaining and recruiting school chapters.

  • The Second Vice President is responsible for all spirit and for coordinating statewide service projects. 

  • The Parliamentarian is the primary interpreter of the GJCL Constitution. They organize elections and candidacy and keep order at state board meetings. They should also propose amendments to add, subtract, or edit the Constitution if necessary. Innovativeness, authoritativeness, and timeliness are characteristics of a competent parliamentarian. 

  • The Secretary is the recorder of proceedings at state board meetings and the parliamentarian’s assistant. Taking good notes is paramount to being a Secretary. They also create and distribute the GJCL monthly newsletter.

• The appointed offices are Webmaster, Editor, Historian, and Hostess. ​

  • The Historian acts as the GJCL's official photographer at all state and national events, runs the official GJCL Instagram and Linktree accounts, and creates the GJCL scrapbook, which they submit at the NJCL Convention. ​

  • The Editor creates and distributes the Alae Mercurii, the GJCL's quarterly publication. 

  • The Webmaster manages and updates the GJCL website, as well as provides school webmasters with materials or opportunities to improve their skills.

  • The Hostess coordinates GJCL activity for middle-schoolers and collaborates with the First Vice President in membership and recruitment.

• Candidates for elected positions will campaign (including speeches) at Nominations Committee, Open Forum, and the General Assemblies at State Convention. Candidates for appointed positions will campaign through an interview at State Convention.

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Steps to the Campaigning Process

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1. Seeking nomination from school chapter (for an elected office):​​

   • Only two delegates per chapter can run for elected positions, but chapters can have one candidate for each of the appointed positions.

   • Every candidate must be in good standing with the Georgia JCL and must have attended at least 1 Georgia or National JCL meeting.

   • Every candidate also must be enrolled in a Latin class for the entirety of their term or must have completed all Latin classes offered at their school.

   • No student who is a high school senior or above may run for any office.

2. Requesting a recommendation from your school Latin teacher, which must be submitted to GJCL Parliamentarian Ashley Wang (ashyywang@gmail.com).

   • The letter should be submitted by March 29 and will inquire about your leadership qualities, personality, work ethic, and more.

3. ​Submitting Papers of Candidacy to GJCL Parliamentarian Ashley Wang by March 29 through the Google Form.

   • Asks for general information (phone number, school, picture ID, etc) ​​ ​

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After Step 3, candidates for elected and appointed offices will follow different steps. ​ ​​

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​The next steps for an elected office are the following: ​

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1. Preparing campaign materials and speeches

   • You can have up to five 22x28 posters and other materials, but you have a $20 budget for your campaign. You will not have to provide receipts, but it will be obvious if a candidate fails to abide by this rule.

   • You must have either a nominations committee speech of less than 1 minute and 30 seconds if more than four candidates are running for your same office, or talking points if four candidates or fewer are running for that office. You’ll know shortly after March 29 how contested the office you’re running for is.

   • Most importantly, you must have an official GA II (General Assembly II) speech of less than 2 minutes. You are not allowed to have another person make an introductory speech on your behalf. ​

2. Giving either a speech or talking points at Nominations Committee

   • N.B. at most 4 candidates will be running for each position after NomCom. The four who run for each position will be determined by voters at NomCom.

   • Candidates who failed to pass NomCom may choose to run for an appointed office.

3. Beginning and conducting a campaign

   • This process has no specific time or location but should be done throughout the course of State Convention, including introducing yourself to and sharing your platform with delegates from other schools.

   • This can be done with the help of friends, other candidates, and posters that abide by the price limit (<$20).

4. Giving an official speech at GA II

5. Answering questions at Open Forum

   • These questions can be silly or serious and provide voters with a better look at your platform and personality. Most questions pertain to each candidate's duties.

6. More campaigning for the remainder of Sunday! 

7. Removing any campaign materials you put up on Sunday morning.

8. Hearing the election and appointment results at GA III on Sunday.

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The next steps for an appointed office are the following: ​ ​  

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1. Interviewing with the corresponding GJCL student officer and adult state chair about plans and qualifications.

2. Hearing the election and appointment results at GA III on Sunday.

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Other Information

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Please consider the following before finalizing your decision to run for a state office:

• Every office requires a decent amount of time commitment. Make sure you will be able to budget your time if elected as an officer. ​

• Most people running will have dedicated innumerable hours to JCL activities, so don’t run just for the title. Run because you want to make a positive, meaningful impact on GJCL. ​

• If you’re yearning to be part of the board, but don’t want to do as much talking/campaigning, consider running for an appointed office. Choose an office where your skills reside. ​

• If need be, an impeachment and removal vote can and will be carried out for officers who don’t do their due diligence. ​ ​​​​​​

 

Make sure to read the Campaign Policy (listed below), a consolidated document of rules and guidelines for the entire campaign and election process. ​