A 15-20 minute virtual business meeting will be held to address the legal obligations of the cooperative. It is vital to our membership’s, staff’s and directors’ health and safety that we not allow membership attendance at this year’s annual meeting due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

In place of the usual $10 attendance bill credit, Daviess-Martin will issue a $10 voting bill credit to members who vote by mail or electronically in our annual director election. Survey & Ballot Systems will administer our director election this year. Every member will receive a ballot through the mail to complete and mail back to Survey & Ballot Systems. As an alternative, there are instructions in the mailing to quickly and easily vote electronically without the necessity of mailing a ballot. Survey & Ballot Systems has security and processes to prevent duplicate voting.

As part of this voting change, Survey & Ballot Systems is able to inform Daviess-Martin REMC of which members have voted, but not how they have voted. Our attorney will open the voting results at the virtual Annual Meeting. Election results also do not identify how individual members voted. Daviess-Martin will find out the results of the election on the night of the virtual Annual Meeting, and it will be posted on our website and on Facebook.

Casting your vote by mail or electronically before the Annual Meeting ensures your ballot isn’t handled by co-op staff. It also ensures that you will get a $10 voting credit and enters you into weekly energy certificate drawings during the mail-in and electronic voting period. The voting period should last approximately three weeks.  

Members may bring the top one-third of the mail-in ballot to the cooperative office drive-through to claim their door prize. Members should remove the top portion of the ballot before mailing it to Survey & Ballot Systems or voting using their online system. No ballots will be accepted at the cooperative. Ballots should be submitted directly to Survey & Ballot Systems. This is to ensure the security and transparency of each member vote.

Business meeting action items will include:

• The election of three directors for the cooperative to serve a term of three years. Districts up for election include District 2 (Van Buren and Barr townships in Daviess County), District 5 (Perry and Center townships in Martin County) and District 7 (Marion and Spice Valley townships in Lawrence County).

• Approval of reports for the previous fiscal year.

• Transacting such other business as may come before the meeting.

Incumbent board members who have filed written notice stating their intention to seek a seat on the board of directors are as follows:

• District 2: Dean Harrawood

• District 5: Travis Summers

• District 7: John Edwards

In accordance with DMREMC bylaws, nominations for members to become a director on the REMC board shall be made by petition. Valid nominating petitions must be submitted to the REMC no later than Feb. 22. A candidate bio (limited to 150-200 words), along with a recent picture, should be submitted when returning the petition. Petition forms are available by contacting the REMC office.

Director candidates will be listed on the Official Notice of the Annual Meeting mailed to the membership. Candidate bios will be mailed in a voting packet to members.