General Information

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Publication of Vacancies for Election

All vacancies must be advertised in the Gazette at least 49 days prior to the set election date. [This changes the pre-2006 requirement to advertise vacancies 28 days prior to the election date.] This affects both the date that the vacancy is published and the election date itself.

For an election to meet the statutory requirements that (1) it be held in full term, and (2) that there be at least 49 days notice between the publication of the vacancy and the election date itself, all vacancies must be published before Thursday of the First Week of the same term which the election will be held.

The Elections Office will aim to advertise vacancies earlier whenever possible. For example, vacancies for Annual Election in Trinity Term will normally be first published in Eighth Week of Hilary Term.

Please note: The deadline for sending copy to the Gazette is one week prior to the publication date. Consequently, the Elections Office must receive notice of an impending vacancy ten days before the expected publication date. Notice of vacancies which are received after Monday of Noughth Week cannot be processed for election in the same term.

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Nominations

There is a single date for close of nominations and all nominations must be signed by a minimum of four nominators. [This replaces the pre-2006 practice of two nomination deadlines, the first to be signed by two nominators and the second to be signed by six nominators.]

Election date	Nominations close
Week Seven	4.00 p.m. on Thursday, Week Three
Week Eight	4.00 p.m. on Thursday, Week Four

The nomination forms are available for downloading in word format. There is one nomination form for elections to Divisional and Faculty Boards and one form for elections to Committees and Boards, excluding Divisional and Faculty Boards.

One copy of the nomination form in respect of each nominee, signed by the nominee and four nominators, must be returned to the Elections Office, University Offices, Wellington Square, Oxford, OX1 2JD, before the relevant closing date for nominations. Nominations will not be accepted after the above deadlines.

It would greatly benefit the quality of the published data if the nomination form was returned as an electronic e-mail attachment to elections.office@admin.ox.ac.uk. However, for the nomination to be valid, it must have the original signatures of both the nominee and nominators. Therefore, Candidates must still submit a copy of the official form, signed by the candidate and four nominators, by the relevant deadline noted above.

Publication of Nominations

Nominations will be published on-line as received and processed and will be published as soon as possible thereafter in the Gazette. Due to copy deadlines, nominations will usually be available on the Elections Office website at least one week prior to publication in the Gazette. For elections in Week Seven, all nominations will have been published on the web by the end of Week Four, and in the Gazette of Week Five; for elections in Week Eight, all nominations will have been published on the web by the end of Week Five, and in the Gazette of Week Six.

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Results of Nominations Received

Following the close of nominations, the status of the vacancies due for election will fall into one of three categories: Contested, Uncontested and Lapsed. These are published as Notices, described below.

Notice of Uncontested Elections

In the event that the number of nominations received is equal to the number of vacancies in the pool, the person(s) nominated shall be deemed elected as of the date of the close of nominations. Where individual vacancies have different terms of office, the candidates higher in academic standing shall hold office for the longer period.

The following details will be posted for all vacancies for which only one nomination has been received: the name of the Committee or Board, the name of the Retiring or Current member holding the post at the time of the election, the term of office, the name of the single nominee now deemed elected, and the names of his/her nominators.

Notice of Lapsed Vacancies

In the event that the number of nominations received is less than the number of vacancies in the pool, the person(s) nominated shall be deemed elected as of the date of the close of nominations. Where individual vacancies have different terms of office, the candidate(s) higher in academic standing shall hold office for the longer period(s). Any posts not filled will be deemed lapsed as of the date of the close of nominations, and will remain vacant until an appointment is made jointly by the Vice-Chancellor and the Proctors.

The following details will be posted for all lapsed places: the name of the Committee or Board, the number and type of vacancies, the term of office, and any restrictions concerning eligibility of candidates and/or electorate.

Notice of Contested Elections

In the event that more than one nomination form has been received for a vacancy, a postal ballot of the eligible electorate will be held to determine the elected member.

The following details will be posted for all vacancies for which more than one nomination has been received: the name of the Committee or Board, the name of the Retiring or Current member holding the post at the time of the election, the name of each nominee, the names of his/her nominators, and a brief biographical note.

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