NEC Nomination Meeting Guide Constituency Labour Parties (CLPs) are in the process of nominating candidates for the Labour Party National Executive Committee (NEC) elections. Every CLP in the country can nominate for the 9 open places representing CLPs on the NEC, as well as for the Disabled Members representative on the NEC. 4 of the 9 open places are reserved for women, although there is no gender quota for nominating. Who are the Open Labour candidates? Open Labour’s candidates for the open places are Ann Black and Jermain Jackman. Open Labour’s candidate for the Disabled Members Representative on the NEC is George Lindars-Hammond. CLPs can also nominate for Labour Party Treasurer and Welsh Representative, but Open Labour has not endorsed candidates for these. Why are nominations important? Candidates need 5 CLP nominations to make it onto the ballot. The number of nominations that candidates get also influences how members vote in the actual election. Members are more likely to vote for candidates who have shown they have grassroots support. When will the actual election be held? Ballots for the election will be sent to members on Monday 19 October 2020 and the ballot will close at noon on Thursday 12 November 2020. The results will be announced on Friday 13 November. How will nomination meetings be held? Given the current situation with Covid, CLP nomination meetings will be held online. The Labour Party has issued guidance regarding the running of the meetings which is available here. Who can vote at nomination meetings? • If your CLP has ‘all member meetings’ then only full members of the Labour Party on the day of the meeting (i.e. those who joined at least eight weeks before) will be able to participate/vote. • If your CLP has ‘general committee meetings’ (i.e. a meeting of delegates from branches and affiliates) then only general committee members will be able to participate/vote. Please do not try to attend a nomination meeting if you are not eligible to participate in it. How does proposing/seconding of candidates work? Members/delegates may be asked to propose/second candidates in advance or be invited to do so during the meeting. Those proposing/seconding candidates will usually be given some time to explain why they support the candidate they are proposing/seconding, although this may be limited to proposers only or not take place at all. You should make sure that if you are proposing/seconding a candidate that you keep any speech positive and do not attack other candidates. What is the process for voting? The nomination meeting can be carried out using any video conference software but CLPs must use a system called ‘Choice Voting’ to allow members/delegates to vote. This will be done after the discussion on the candidates has closed, and may extend for some time after the end of the meeting, with results emailed to members. CLPs can decide what voting method is used (e.g. first-past-the-post or single transferable vote). The CLP Secretary must ensure that only those eligible can vote. The process will include checking people’s names against the membership list before admitting them to the virtual meeting room. Nomination meeting preparation checklist Below is a checklist to help with preparing for your CLP nomination meeting. 1. Ask your CLP Secretary whether the CLP will be holding a nomination meeting and if so when this will be, and how it will operate. CLPs have the right to nominate but are not required to do so or hold a nomination meeting. All eligible members / delegates should be given seven days’ notice and informed of the process for nominating candidates and registering for the meeting and the ballot. 2. Some members may try to stop CLPs from nominating 9 candidates for the CLP section of the NEC. Additionally, where 9 or fewer candidates are nominated, there may be a proposal to vote yes/no on each candidate. This is allowed if the Labour Party centrally agreed and this is set up before the meeting. Arguments against both these approaches include that: • it reduces members voice and choice (as there are 9 places); • nominating 9 allows for more left voices and not doing so could increase the chances that Labour 2 Win wins; and • nominating 9 allows the ability to nominate the CLGA state but also nominate Jermain Jackman, who could be the first black man on the NEC, as well as Ann Black who has a great record of representing members. 3. Get in touch with other supporters of Open Labour candidates to plan your approach to the meeting (e.g. who will propose/second which candidates and what they will say). 4. Also, plan what you are going to put into the chat of your virtual meeting (if it has this function). You should make sure you post content at the start of the meeting, while proposing/seconding candidates and towards the end of the meeting. 5. Contact members to talk to them about why they should support the Open Labour candidates and encourage them to participate in the meeting. 6. Some CLPs may ask you to propose/second candidates in advance, so please make sure you do this by the relevant deadline. Following the meeting Following the meeting, please email [email protected] with the result. If an Open Labour candidate has been nominated, please also tweet this. Questions and support If you have any questions or need any support please email [email protected]. Speaking Notes for Nominating Candidates ANN BLACK – CLP SECTION “I would like to nominate Ann Black for the NEC CLP position Ann was an NEC member for 18 years as part of the grassroots alliance, from Tony Blair’s time when they were in a minority of four, to Jeremy Corbyn when socialist policies returned to the mainstream. Throughout that time she voted against Trident, Iraq and austerity, and for public services, social housing and decent pensions and benefits. Ann is also a democrat. She got one-member-one-vote elections for the national policy forum, voted for Jeremy Corbyn to be on the ballot in 2016, and against a six-month cut-off date which stopped many members voting. Ann hasn’t agreed with every leader but has always respected their mandate. It was wrong for members, including MPs, to undermine Jeremy, and it’s wrong to undermine Keir Starmer now. Only the Tories will benefit. When she left the NEC, the party had just completed its biggest-ever democracy review, and she standing to make sure that it’s implemented. Just a couple of areas: She delivered the first free-standing women’s conference for more than 20 years, and when she left the NEC, 2020 was pencilled in. It didn’t happen. The party may have some kind of virtual thing in 2021, but women’s organisation cannot take second place again. The NEC also promised to review membership rates, and the share of subscription income which comes back to CLPs. Nothing has happened for two years. Money is piling up in central funds, while we don’t have enough to organise and campaign. And finally she will, as before, report online, promptly and fully. We should hear directly from our elected reps, not from rumours, leaks and Twitter, and if you elect Ann, she promises that you will. JERMAIN JACKMAN – CLP SECTION “I'm here to nominate Jermain Jackman for the NEC CLP position. We all know how important this election is. The NEC is a vital body to this party and this movement, as such, it should shame us all that we have never elected a black man into the NEC. We all must work together to break that ceiling, and I feel that Jermain Jackman is that candidate. Jermain is a young socialist who has always put his community first. He's tirelessly campaigned and canvassed locally and nationally and led efforts to tackle issues in and outside of our party. Jermain pledges to make our party more accessible and democratic. These include A robust complaints procedure fit for purpose, Further Party democratisation, the expansion of political education programs, improving accessibility to CLP meetings and finally supporting a radical Labour Government looking to the future. Jermain commits himself to all of these pledges to improve this party for good. In the era of Black Lives Matter, we need an NEC who can respond to this with true anti-racist credentials. Jermain has consistently campaigned for black lives matter and has always challenged those in power within his community to do better in responding to the systemic injustices we have in society today. Many members of colour currently feel disenfranchised, disheartened and disengaged from getting involved within the party. That was the reason why Jermain helped set up the 1987 Caucus (a group for young black men in the Labour Party, campaigning on issues & to increase representation at all levels of the Labour Party). If you believe that this party can always do more to champion and progress the needs of those marginalised communities If you feel like this NEC needs more community activists if you feel that the NEC should act less as a sectarian tool and more of a true representation of our grassroots. I urge you to nominate Jermain.” GEORGE LINDARS-HAMMOND – DISABILITY SECTION “I’d like to nominate George Lindars-Hammond for Disabled Members representative role. George has a huge amount of experience as a Councillor, leading on social care in a major a city, as a trade unionist and a Disability activist.