Be Prepared for the Possibility of Election By Acclamation

By Kelly G. Richardson, Esq. CCAL

Last year, HOAs received a very helpful new tool with the enactment of Civil Code Section 5103 – election by acclamation. This allows HOAs to cancel their balloting and declare the candidates to be elected to the board if certain qualifications are met. However, the acclamation procedure is not automatic, and the HOA must meet all of the requirements of this new statute.

Number of nominated candidates: The number of nominated candidates must be equal to or less than the number of open seats. So, for example, if 3 seats are up for election, and 1,2, or 3 members are nominated, then acclamation could be used.

At least 1 successful election in prior 3 years: Per Civil Code Section 5103(a), there must have been one completed election during the three years prior to the voting in the current election process. If the HOA meeting has failed for lack of quorum three or more years in a row, acclamation will unavailable until there is a successful election.

Two notifications to members (5103(b)): Two new notices must be given to the membership, each notice stating the number of open seats in the upcoming election, the nominations deadline, how nominations are submitted, and that the board might seat the candidates by acclamation if the number of candidates does not exceed the number of open seats. The second notice to members must also list any candidates already nominated at the time of the second notice. Both notices must be individually sent to all members- so preserving the acclamation option requires two additional postal mailings (except for members who have consented to electronic communications). The first notice must be sent at least 90 days before the nominations deadline, so if your HOA usually allows a 30 day nominations period, the first notice must go out at least 60 days prior to the opening of nominations. The second notice is a reminder notice that must be sent between 7 and 30 days before nominations close, so if the HOA uses a 30 day nominations period, this notice could be combined with the call for candidates.

Notifications to nominators and nominees: The HOA must respond by mail or email within 7 days with an acknowledgement to the nominator and an announcement to the nominee. If the nominee is ineligible, that must be explained to the nominee in the notification.

Acclamation is not automatic: Per Civil Code 5103(e), the board may vote to consider the candidates elected by acclamation. Acclamation still requires a board vote to complete the process, and the published agenda for that meeting must include the name of each qualified candidate who will be seated if acclamation is approved. 

HOAs should plan their election calendar at least six months before the annual election date, to preserve the option of election by acclamation. Counting backwards, the HOA needs at least: 30 days for voting, 30 days for nominated candidates announcement, 30 days for call for candidates, and 60 more days before the call for candidates for the first election announcement under Section 5103(b) – that is a total of 5 months. So, plan ahead to preserve the potential benefits of election by acclamation.

HOAs may also want to consider updating their election rules to add the acclamation process and deadlines.