Really, Have We Become that Complacent?

Abstract

In place of JEN Editor-in-Chief Reneé Holleran's regular editorial, JEN is featuring guest editor J. Jeffery Jordan, MS, RN, MBA, CEN, CNE, EMT-LP, of Macomb, Oklahoma. Mr. Jordan is a past ENA Board member and is currently serving as the Chair of the 2012 Resolutions Committee. He is a member of the Oklahoma State Council and serves on their board as Immediate Past President. Mr. Jordan is an instructor and coordinator of the RN to BSN program at East Central University in Ada, Oklahoma, and a part-time staff RN in the emergency department at Seminole Medical Center, Seminole, Oklahoma. I did it, did you? I exercised my right to vote in the last Emergency Nurses Association (ENA) election process to elect our Board of Directors. I was one of the 5.3% of our association's membership who took an active part in choosing those candidates for our board whom I felt could stand up to the fiduciary responsibilities of governing our association's multimillion dollar budget. Why is the 5.3% significant? Sadly, in 2011, only a little more than 2,100 members of the more than 40,000 who were eligible to cast a ballot voted in the election. I have wondered why our voter turnout has decreased each year. Is this fact because of voter apathy? This trend is not unique to ENA; it is one shared by voters within the United States, too. “Voter participation in the U.S. remains consistently below corresponding levels in most other western democracies.”1Ghosh PR Why is there so much voter apathy in U.S. elections? International Business Times.http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/216368/20110919/us-elections-presidential-mid-term-voter-apathy-eligible.htmGoogle Scholar Have we become a society that cannot be bothered to take the 10 minutes it requires to log in and vote for our association's board of directors? It was a little over 11 years ago that I and my colleagues Michael D. Moon, MaryAnn Tetter, and Michelle Siliker presented a resolution to our general assembly calling for ENA to move to electronic voting, both for general assembly as well as for the national elections. Our voter participation soared for a few years after the implementation of electronic voting. As the years have gone by, we have steadily seen a decrease each year in our percentages of voting members in the election process. This trend continues to puzzle me. The cost of the electronic balloting for ENA is approximately $30,000 each year. Breaking this cost down even further, it cost approximately $14 for each member to vote in the election with only 2,200 members voting. Is this cost effective for the ENA? Is voting for our board of directors a member privilege? If the number of members actually voting continues to decrease, are we being good stewards allowing ENA to continue to pay the cost for members to vote? Would we be better served to divert that money to some other cause, such as program development, research, or scholarships? These are all valid questions to consider. The House of Delegates will consider the aforementioned and many more questions related to our elections at the General Assembly in San Diego in September, 2012. I have spoken to a group of members who are considering the submission of a proposed bylaw amendment that calls for our board members and officers to be elected by the House of Delegates. I am neither pro nor con on this issue, but I do think the debate will be lively and informative, to say the least. I ask you to ponder these questions and let your state councils hear from you so that your state delegates can make informed decisions when casting their votes. I also want you to take a moment to vote this May (2012) for our Board of Directors. The ballots are open or soon will be, so make sure to cast your vote for the candidates of your choice. Remember, you are choosing candidates that should possess the skill sets needed to effectively manage ENA and the fiduciary integrity necessary to manage a multimillion dollar budget. I would also ask you to take the initiative to register and vote in our upcoming national election, or if you are already registered, then vote. Please take an active part in our governing process, not only in ENA but also in the local, state, and federal governmental arena as well. Democracy works best when its members/citizens educate themselves about candidates and their positions on issues before casting their vote. Exercise your right and VOTE! J. Jeffery Jordan, MS, RN, MBA, CEN, CNE, EMT-LP, is RN to BSN Coordinator/Instructor, East Central University, Ada, OK, and PRN Staff Nurse, Seminole Medical Center, Seminole, OK.