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Governance & Directors

Attend a Board Meeting

Vote by Proxy

The business and affairs of the Cooperative shall be managed by a board of 9 directors.  All directors shall be elected by secret ballot and shall hold office for a term of 3 years. These are your directors for Graham County Electric Cooperative (GCEC).

Arizona Corporation Commission

Director Election Process

The process for becoming a Director for GCEC is contained in the Cooperative bylaws Article IV.  The summary below is not intended to replace the bylaws but only to help the interested person understand important deadlines such as when petitions are due and a general understanding of the overall process.  Each candidate for a director position should carefully read the bylaws and understand the procedures. See below for GCEC Bylaws.

Step 1: Determine if the Candidate is Qualified

  • Must be a member of GCEC.
  • GCEC candidates must be a bona fide resident in the area served meaning that you must receive electric service from GCEC to your place of residence in the district you wish to be a candidate.  There are 3 districts and 3 directors for each district.
  • Other qualifications are listed in the bylaws under Article IV (Qualifications).

Service Territory

Step 2: Sign the “Code of Ethics for Candidates for Board of Directors”

GCEC Election Code of Ethics

You may also download the GCEC Election Code of Ethics (PDF)

  1. A Candidate, his or her employees, or agents shall not participate in the following behavior:
    1. Counterfeit or distribute unofficial ballots.
    2. Forge or falsely vote a ballot.
    3. Destroy or deface a ballot.
    4. Delay the delivery of a ballot.
    5. Mark a voted ballot or ballot envelope with the intent to disqualify it.
    6. Mark an unvoted ballot.
    7. Offer or provide any consideration to acquire a voted or unvoted ballot.
    8. Solicit the collection of unvoted ballots.
    9. Collect voted ballots.
    10. Force, threaten, menace, or bribe or by any other corrupt means, either directly or
      indirectly:

      1. To attempt to influence a member in casting his or her vote or to deter him
        or her from casting his vote.
      2. To attempt to awe, restrain or disturb a member in exercising their right to
        vote.
      3. To defraud a member by deceiving and causing them to vote for a
        different person than they intended or desired to vote for.
    11. Induce a member, either by menace, reward or promise thereof, to vote differently
      than the member intended or desired to vote.
  2. It is the responsibility of the Candidate to educate his or her employees and agents of
    these policies.
  3. Any Candidate caught violating these policies, directly or through his or her employees
    or agents, shall be disqualified as a Candidate for the Board of Directors.
  4. All ballots tainted by violations of this policy will be disqualified.
  5. If the violation of these policies is brought to the attention of the Board of Directors after
    the Candidate is elected, the Board shall have the right to remove that Candidate from the
    Board.
  • A list of member names and addresses for campaign purposes only may be obtained from the cooperative for $10 but is not required. The following request form must be returned to obtain the list.
  • Membership Address List Request Form (PDF)

Step 3: Complete a Nomination by Petition

  • All candidates must be nominated by petition, in writing, containing the signatures of at least 25 current members.  GCEC candidates must have signatures from members who live in the district in which the proposed candidate desires to serve as a Director
  • Please refer to the Bylaws (PDF) for details about write-in candidates
  • Nominating petitions will be available 60 days prior to the annual meeting of the cooperative and must be obtained in person.  Petitions are due back not less than 35 days prior to the annual meeting.
  • The GCEC annual meeting is typically the 1st Saturday in March each year but is subject to change. (Next meeting is March 2, 2024)
  • GCEC petitions are typically available early-January and are due back in late January
  • Please contact our office or look for notices in your utility bill and/or other communications for exact dates or refer to the bylaws to determine when petitions are available and due