[EM] Public elections are the ones that matter.

[Dave Ketchum]

On Sun, 13 Nov 2005 03:00:59 -0500 James Green-Armytage wrote:

> Dave Ketchum <davek at clarityconnect.com> writes:
> 
>>Corporations are off in their own corner - each share of stock owns a 
>>vote, to be voted by its owner.
>>
> 
> Yes, of course corporations officially work on a one-share-one-vote basis,
> and often allow for proxy votes, but in my opinion a robust delegable
> proxy system could go a long way toward improving corporate governance.
>>From the current draft of my delegable proxy paper (at
> http://fc.antioch.edu/~james_green-armytage/vm/proxy.htm ):
> 
> Many corporations allow shareholders to vote by proxy, but in many cases,
> shareholders do not know much about the proxies whom they designate. If
> corporations were required to allow for delegable proxy voting, then I as
> a small stockholder could potentially delegate my votes to nonprofit
> organizations that shared my values with regard to corporate policy. (I
> should retain proxy vote rights even if my ownership of stock is brokered
> by an intermediary agent.) This could help corporate policy to conform
> more closely to the values of ordinary citizens, just as the general
> proposal could help government policy to do the same. Hence, the use of
> the delegable proxy system could bring us closer to both political and
> economic democracy.
> 
> my best,
> James


In a way I see this topic being different for public vs other elections:

Doing delegable proxies for public elections means selling and getting a 
law to fit - worth pursuing.

Doing them for corporations:
      Does Robert's Rules have anything helpful?
      Is there any law that forbids what you want?  If so, work on the law.

Then write up a bylaws change and have a stock owner submit it to an 
annual meeting for hoped-for adoption.  Might even get the board to back 
adoption - assuming they see it as useful.

Mention of nonprofits turns me off - for my stock I would like more 
flexibility than I have now as to proxies, but I would WANT a proxy paying 
enough attention to vote intelligently.
-- 
  davek at clarityconnect.com    people.clarityconnect.com/webpages3/davek
  Dave Ketchum   108 Halstead Ave, Owego, NY  13827-1708   607-687-5026
            Do to no one what you would not want done to you.
                  If you want peace, work for justice.