View source for Convergence:Voting pre-C15

'''This information is out of date.  It refers to the C14 Vote Process.  Things will change for the C15 Vote Process.'''

==C14 BALLOT==

The ballot of cities to host Convergence 14 will be announced here and on alt.gothic.* newsgroups once the proposals have been submitted. See the timeline for more information.


==C14 VOTING SYSTEM==

Upon final verification of this years voter database, announcements of the opening of the vote will be emailed to each validated voter.

Upon logging in during the vote period, voters will be able to log in to www.altgothic.com and place their vote.

This year's voting system is a single choice plan. Each voter will be given a single vote for the city of their choice.

==WHAT IS THE EMAIL &quot;PING&quot;?==

All eligible voters for the following Convergence voting period will receive a &quot;ping&quot; email to verify their email address is still valid and does not bounce. This email will originate from webmaster@altgothic.com. This is to remove the detritus from year to year of expired accounts. If you are registered to vote, you should receive a ping, you do not have to do anything with it, and do *not* reply to it. If you do not receive a ping, you need to register to obtain your vote.
==WHO IS ELIGIBLE TO VOTE?==

In order to be eligible to vote for the location of Convergence 14, you will need to be a Registered alt.gothic Convergence^(SM) Voter. If you are already registered to vote for Convergence 14, you will receive an email &quot;ping&quot; in the form of a copy of the Convergence 14 time-line on or around April 1, 2007 from the following email address: webmaster@altgothic.com.

If you have not attended any previous convergence using pre-registration and/or you have not previously used the Mail-In Registration method and/or your contact email address has changed since the last voting period, you will not receive a ping and you MUST use the Mail-In Registration method in order to participate in the Convergence 14 Vote.

Mail-In Registration is open begins April 1, 2007, and ends on May 5, 2007. Any Mail-in registrations received after May 5, 2007 will NOT be processed for Convergence 14. They will be processed AFTER the voting period as mail-in registrations for Convergence 15 voting.

Browse altgothic.com or consult the Convergence 14 Mail-in Registration document for full instructions on how to use Mail-In Registration.
==HOW DO I REGISTER TO VOTE?==

If you did not receive an email &quot;Ping&quot; from altgothic.com with preliminary voting instructions for registered voters within a week of April 1, 2007, then you are not in our current database and therefor not registered to vote.

You may self-register to vote for Convergence 14 by doing the following:

Send a photocopy of your government issued picture ID with the ID # or SSN blocked out along with the following information:

*Network Alias *current / permanent email address

For those updating an email address, please include your old email address.

Send this documentation to:

Convergence 14 Vote
c/o Peter H. Coffin
1343 E Moreland Blvd #10
Waukesha, WI 53186
United States of America

The envelope MUST arrive no later than April 13, 2007. Submissions postmarked after April 13, 2007 will not be eligible to participate in this year's Convergence election.

ONE mail-in registration per envelope only.

The information from this registration will be used for Convergence Voting purposes ONLY, and will not be used for any other purpose, nor released to any other party.
==WHEN IS THE CONVERGENCE 14 VOTING PERIOD?==

The voting period will begin at 0:00EST (05:00GMT)on May 5, 2007. Only registered voters will be allowed to vote, using security keys which will be emailed to them prior to the start of the actual vote.

If you do not receive an email stating you are registered to vote within a week of April 1, 2007 you are not registered to vote, and you must submit a mail-in registration to vote for Convergence 14. You can find instructions on how to use Mail-In Registration on www.altgothic.com or on the Mail-In Registration document posted to alt.gothic.* news groups.
==THE VOTING TIMELINE==

This is a copy of the official timeline. It is not necessarily how things WILL work, but how they SHOULD. Keep an eye on alt.gothic, alt.gothic.convergence and this website for updates to this information.

[0:00EST (05:00GMT) April 1, 2007]
Convergence 14 Registered Voter Database PING.
Mail-In Convergence Voter Registration Period BEGINS.
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An email ping will be send to the current Registered Voter database to weed out dead addresses and transmit this document. If you do NOT receive a ping within 72 hours, you are not registered to vote for whatever reason and you MUST submit a mail-in registration in order to vote this year.

See the Mail-in registration document or browse altgothic.com for information on how to register to vote via mail-in.

[0:00EST (05:00GMT) April 1, 2007]
Convergence 14 Bid Proposal Request Period BEGINS.
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All Convergence 14 Bid Proposal Committee Chairpersons must contact [[User:Siobhan | Siobhan]] (convergence@virulent.org) to have a web account set up on altgothic.com to host their proposal web sites.

[0:00EST (05:00GMT) April 13, 2007]
Convergence 14 Bid Proposal Submission Period BEGINS.
Convergence 14 Bid Proposal Public Discussion and Debate Period BEGINS.
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During this time Bid Proposal Committees may submit their Bid Proposals and preliminary event budgets to [[User:Siobhan | Siobhan]] (convergence@virulent.org) for inclusion on the Convergence 14 ballot. After receipt of submission they may post their Bid Proposals to the alt.gothic.* news groups, and open their web sites to the public. Posting to regional mailing lists, weblogs and other mediums is acceptable but not essential.

See the Proposal Guidelines document or altgothic.com for information on how to create and submit a Convergence 14 proposal.

The Convergence 14 Bid Proposal Public Discussion and Debate Period also begins at this time. Discussions will take place primarily on the alt.gothic news groups and altgothic.com mailing lists.

Browse altgothic.com for more information on how to subscribe to available convergence-centric mailing lists.

[0:00EST (05:00GMT) May 5, 2007]
Convergence 14 Bid Proposal Submission Period ENDS.
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Additional Convergence 14 Bid Proposals will NOT be accepted after this date.

[0:00EST (05:00GMT) May 5, 2007]
Convergence 14 Bid Proposal Public Discussion and Debate Period ENDS.
Convergence 14 Mail-In Voter Registration Period ENDS.
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All official public debates conclude and Proposal web sites are frozen.

Any Mail-in registrations received after this date will NOT be processed.

[0:00EST (05:00GMT) May 5, 2007]
Convergence 14 Voting Period BEGINS.
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Convergence 14 vote keys and instructions are mailed out to all registered voters and voting begins.

[0:00EST (05:00GMT) May 13, 2007]
Convergence 14 Voting Period ENDS.
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Voting is closed and results will be reviewed and tallied.

[0:00EST (05:00GMT) May 14, 2007]
Convergence 14 winning Proposal is announced.
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The winning Convergence 14 Proposal and relevant voting demographics will be announced on altgothic.com, the alt.gothic news groups and send to all voters who submitted their votes.

==CONTINUING REFORM==

This voting procedure is obviously not perfect. As with all aspects of Convergence, it is a work in progress and everyone involved is intent on improving the voting process, as well as all aspects of the festival as it continues to grow and gain popularity. We hope as time goes on that those of you who attend and enjoy Convergence will make an effort to work with us to continue what has been a very highly focused and productive group effort in the year plus that has followed since the Convergence six voting season.