Campaigning Rules for a Board position

Does anyone have any thoughts (or list) of the Do's and Don't a candidate should abide to when campaigning for a Board position. For example, should they be able to text or email all residents of the HOA. What about door hangers, posters, sliding a flyer under a door or posting a flyer in an elevator. Also should current Board members campaign or make their view know to residents who they should vote for. Thanks!!

Are you on the Board? Well, Calif., has a big list of HOA dos and don'ts about campaigning, with which our HOA complies.

So the first thing is to check with your state o see if any restrictions. Next what about your own CC&Rs?
rs or rules. & regs? Do they ban yard signs? Items act homes' front doors?

We're a condo bldg.too and no residents may post any items in our elevators. But we do have a community bulletin board on which a candidate may post a campaign flyer limited to 5"x7".

If owners are allowed to have owners' email addies, yes, a candidate may send a campaign email unless there's some written restriction.

Like any other owner, candidates for election or reelection may campaign for themselves or for others. In my hOA they can post one campaign in their condo window not to exceed 3X3 per CA law.

Is there anything in mind that you want to do or don't want others to do in campaigning?

Please rest your question, Philip. I thought you were asking if there are any typical rules.

Cathy thinks you're asking about campaign content.

In Calif, all ownrs have access to all ownr's email addies--requests have to be a certain way. I think this also applies to some other states. Ohio??

We do not have access to phones #s in CA

I agree that at any owner, candidate or not may campaign, endorse. any. c andante. I don't know how anyone could disagree?

While unusual, I completely disagree with Cathy on this one.

Joe D only "does" this title while acting with his fellow directors at meetings. BOARDS act, not individual directors. Joe D is always Joe H. And Joe H has the same rights as any other Owner. He can criticize, campaign, etc..

HOW he does these things-stupidly or effectively-- isn't the topic here.

I campaigned for myself twice to be reelected the 8 time I ran and won. I also campaigned for others when I was on the Board

I don't understated this from Cathy: "For example, he has more options for criticizing the board if he's no longer on it. In this instance, he'd be trying to influence the outcome of a vote - and the lines are blurred to the point of dissolving whether he's acting as Joe Director or Joe Homeowner or both."

Campaigning ,of course, is trying to influence the outcome of owners' votes. ....

I still disagree. We have a few owners who everyone seems to know from past Board service or Social Community Service. And we hav had some terrible presidents and some excellent ones. And we, like any social organizations have some -- dare I say it-- influencers. They can influence the outcome, just as in a local election, etc. This should NOT limit their voice.

Oddly, very little campaigning is done in my HOA. nd I can think of few sections where the loser, incumbent or otherwise could have won with campaigning.

We had our election on 10/21. 5 candidates for 3 spots.. One director sent a letter urging about a dozen people, including me, to reelect "Jo." This director is very inactive and useless, ,just like "Jo" was during hr almost 2 years of service.

I sent an email to about 25 owners who I felt might not vote. I rec'd a man for reelection, and a newbie, whose Candidate Statement and words at our Candidates Night, which was very lightly attended (?), were good one.s.

I wrote that my experience with 30+ (!) directors over the years of my service here was that ppl. newly retired from their longtime "career" often are looking for a new interest and that that have been the strongest, most productive directors, thus the newbie.

In my campaign blurb, I rec'd "Sara," a CPA, who'd served on our Finance Committee , who'd showed up at Candidate Night ( Jo had not).

Surprisingly to me, Sara got the most votes, then the newbie, then the incumbent. Jo was a rather distant 4th.

I do think I influenced the outcome. But every other owner has exactly the SAME opportunity. I do think a few ppl.might be mad at me. I do NOT think that being "known" disquaifies any owner from campaigning for self or others.

Should this be a new topic, BillD?

It's worth talking about since his is not an uncommon scenario.

I think it's helpful for a known director to make his choices known about candidates.
But email, text, door hangers, flyers don't really respect neighbors' privacy and it tells others that your neighbor is not at home.
A personal note or letter mailed to neighbors would be better received methinks.

One person's opinions:

I'd start with rules you may already have regarding posting anything in the common areas. For example, if you already prohibit attaching flyers, posters, etc., in the elevators, hallways, 3tc., why should a board election campaign be any different?

If you have a policy on providing owner lists, use that. Candidates should know what information may or may not be available, based on the homeowner's preference, so if they don't get a bunch of email addresses, they'll just have to knock on doors, as LetA noted. If someone objects to getting an email, text or several, they should take that up with the candidate and the association should stay out of it. They could remind candidates not to stick anything in mailboxes without postage becwuse that's illegal.

Regarding board members endorsing specific candidates, I think if you're a former board member or are stepping down, dowhatyoulike. If you're running for reelection or it's not yet time for your spot to open up, I'd prefer that you stay neutral and stick to discussing association issues and your take on them. You should be able to work with whoever gets elected or reelected, because running the association effectively must take priority.

This is another reason why I push meet the candidate nights - have everyone make a presentation on who they are, why they want the spot, issues they're especially interested in, etc. Homeowner can then ask questions and may the best person(s) win.

The difference, Cathy, is that this post is about if an individual owner-- also a director-- may be permitted to exercise their freedom of speech and campaign* for SELF or others using their own resources.

Cathy's example of an amendment to, say, the CC&Rs is about the actual BOARD (NOT an individual) of directors and it spending HOA funds (staff time, US mail, etc) to urge a yes vote. And in CA, Associations, by law, may not use any HOA resources to urge owners to vote yes UNLESS every individual owners has access at no cost to the same resource.

So per our attorney per re: 2022 restatement of our CC&Rs, the HOA can send info with the notable changes in it and explain them as our Board did vetted by our GC. He also participated in a Town Hall to explain the proposed changes. The. ballot letter also explained where to view on our web site a proposed version vs. the original. So Onwrs had PLENTY of info.

All communication from the HOA to owners urged them to vote.Period. We had elevator notices pleading for ownrs to vote. Towards the end, there was a weekly drawing for $100 for those who voted (by secret ballot).

NOW, at the INDIVIDUAL director's level: We divided the 6 directors plus me, who'd just retired from the Board, into 7 precincts and each of us used our own resources to campaign for a yes vote in any way we were willing.. We have 25%. absentee owner. I mainly used email. Some put flyers under owners doors (interior hallways in high rise bldg.) also permitted by CA statute.

We campaigned for about 4-5 months.

Per CA law,if any of us 6 had wanted to, we could have used a "party room" at no rental cost and invited our "precinct's owners" for treats & and a speech or whatever. Our Rules permit one window sign, so we could have done that as Individual directors.

I also am saying "so what?"if every individual director "influences" when they open their mouths individually outside of meetings. I assume that ownrs who attend board meetings influence. those who do not. I assume that ownrs who read meeting minutes inv fluency more than those who do not

* Again, the OP isn't talking about the wisdom of such.

I entirely agree,Cathy, that. directors have an obligation and duty to exhibit behavior to community members that's beyond reproach. As a director, then, I never criticized other directors,* board decisions, etc. Just one reason is that the Business Judgement Rule-- the BJR--every state seems to have a version--which states that we must be loyal to our association..

Note while that does not mean loyalty to "the Board," but to the governing docs--to "the corporation." Bu, a serving director bad-mouthing other directors, mgmt, or etc. IS NOT GOOD for the corporation.

That is is a different thing than campaigning. I saw a current PA senator campaign for another. I saw the current termed-out gov of NC campaigning for a candidate and against the rival. Why in the world should HOA leaders by censored & muffled???

The answer I seem to see is it feels wrong.

* In one of my efforts for reelection, a competitor did campaign against me specifically. She was Board prez (and lousy chair) at the time. Though against our Rules & Reg at that time, she had her hubby deliver flyers under 200+ doors. She had a huge financial error in them. I wrote a brief rejoinder and put a stack of copies in the mailroom. My Candidates Night words are far more professional & knowledgeable than hers.

I won, she lost. After the results are announced at the annual meeting, she left the table, she retuned dabbling at her eyes. Sheesh.

Thank you for your response. Good input. I am not on the Board but lead a sub committee for the Board. We are in MA so will need to check local laws.
What is your position of Board members campaigning/endorsing a candidate??