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Annual Meeting

3/18/2020: Stearns Electric Association’s Annual Meeting is postponed, voting deadline extended to may 1, 2020

In response to the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic, Stearns Electric Association’s 83rd Annual Meeting for our members, originally scheduled for April 2, 2020 at the Melrose High School Auditorium, will be bifurcated (split into two different meetings): Election Results Meeting and Business Meeting.

The 2020 election for the Articles of Incorporation and Bylaw amendments, as well as the Director elections in Districts 1, 7 and 8, has been extended to a new deadline of May 1, 2020.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic impacting our nation, Stearns Electric Association’s Annual Meeting, originally scheduled for April 2, 2020 at the Melrose High School Auditorium, was postponed. Our traditional Annual Meeting will be split into two meetings: Election Results and Business Meeting.

Information for the Election Results Meeting, scheduled for May 7, 2020, meeting is included below. Details for the Business Meeting will be shared with members via Power Connection when the meeting has been rescheduled.

We understand these modifications are not ideal, but we are working hard to accomplish our Cooperative’s business as best as we can during this time.


ELECTION RESULTS MEETING INFORMATION
The Cooperative’s Board of Directors met for a special meeting on March 24 and voted to announce the 2020 election results in a bifurcated Annual Meeting. The Election Results meeting will take place on Thursday, May 7, 2020. Although we cannot allow members to attend in-person due to federal and state guidelines for personal safety at this time, members can live stream this meeting. Details coming very soon. Immediately following the Election Results meeting the, the recorded video will also be available to view on our website ad social media platforms.

This Election Results meeting will be in accordance with the current Cooperative’s Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws. Our legal counsel, third-party election coordinator and our member tellers from Districts 2, 3 and 6 will tally the results.

The election results will also be shared with members in the May edition of Power Connection.

 

BUSINESS MEETING INFORMATION

Later this year, at a date yet to be determined, the Business Meeting will be convened and the Cooperative’s business agenda will be addressed. We are anticipating the rescheduled meeting to take place sometime mid to late summer.

 

2020 ELECTION UPDATE
The Cooperative’s Board of Directors elected to extend the deadline for voting by mail or electronically by one month. The new deadline to submit votes by mail or electronically is 3 p.m. on May 1, 2020.

Members who usually vote in-person at the Annual Meeting are strongly encouraged to vote by mail or electronically in 2020. However, the Cooperative will offer in-person voting at Dymoke Law Office in Melrose on May 5th and 6th. Should the state or federal government extend a stay-in-place mandate that would impact in-person voting, this information could change and will be communicated with members via our social media platforms and on our website, www.stearnselecric.org.

Members can cast their vote one of three ways:

  1. Vote online*. Vote online through SmartHub by logging into your account and clicking on the “Vote Now” button in the top right corner, or by following the website URL provided in your ballot package and using the personalized member number and election passcode to log in. In either format, follow the online voting instructions to place your vote.
    Electronic Voting Instructions
  2. Vote by mail*. Ballot packages were mailed on March 13. Cast your vote for Director (Districts 1, 7 and 8) and the Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws amendments. Place the ballot into the envelope marked “Ballot Envelope” and seal. Then place the “Ballot Envelope” in the return envelope addressed to “Secretary,” seal and mail it. Please allow for sufficient time for delivery.
  3. In person** at Dymoke Law Office on May 5th and 6th. Polls are open 5-7 p.m. each day, but please call and arrange an appointment. Be sure to bring your Annual Report with you for registration.
    Dymoke Law Office
    300 W Riverside Ave.
    Melrose, MN 56352
    Phone: (320) 256-4205

*Online or mail ballots will only be accepted if received by 3 p.m. on Friday, May 1.

** Please call Dymoke Law Office and make an appointment to vote in person. If the state or federal government issues a stay-in-place mandate that would impact in-person voting, this information could change and will be communicated with members via our social media platforms and on our website, www.stearnselecric.org.

Stearns Electric continues to follow federal and state mandates as they occur. The Cooperative will select a new date for the Business Meeting as soon as it can. Information on the Annual Meeting details will be included and announced in future issues of Power Connection, on our website, www.stearnselectric.org/annual-meeting, and our social media accounts. Please call our office during regular business hours for more information, (800) 962-0655.

 

Be informed about your Cooperative and have your voice be heard!

DETAILS WILL BE SHARED HERE AS THEY ARE AVAILABLE

As a member-owned Cooperative, Annual Meetings provide an opportunity for members to hear reports from officers and directors, receive a financial update, ask questions and learn the results of the director elections.

Survey & Ballot Systems, an independent firm, conducts the election voting and will mail a ballot to every Stearns Electric member two weeks prior to the Annual Meeting. Members can vote by mail or online. Voting instructions will be included with your ballot.

Any member in good standing may seek election for the Board of Directors in the district in which he/she resides. Members may also volunteer to serve on the Nominating Committee. The deadline for board candidates is typically mid-January, prior to the spring elections.

 

2020 DIRECTOR CANDIDATES ANNOUNCED

On January 23, 2020, the member run Nominations Committee nominated the following Stearns Electric members to run for the the Board of Director

DISTRICT 1:
DISTRICT 7:
DISTRICT 8:
2019 Annual Report

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