West Michigan Anarchist Federation: Decision Making
The WMAF has a similar decision making process to that of the European Anarchist Federation, though we have reworked it to reflect our structure and size.
General Decision Making
Due to the size & membership of the WMAF all decision making is conducted within internal meetings. We will typically reach a consensus through discussion though we will officially come to agreement through a vote of members.
Voting
If a proposal is called to vote then the exact wording is clarified by the facilitator and final positions in favor or against are tallied. If over one third of these votes are against the proposal then it fails at this time, otherwise it passes (though is subject to ratification). Abstentions do not factor into this result however all positions are minuted.
On occasion a vote will be called to decide between two different outcomes to the same issue. The facilitator will clarify the wording and tally the votes for each proposed outcome separately before taking votes. Any option which has over one third of votes against (not including abstentions) fails. If any versions still in the running, the one with the most votes in favour (or when tied the fewest votes against) will be the version which passes. If they are still deadlocked and accommodation cannot be reached through discussion then a further call to vote by simple majority vote between the options can be made. If this still fails to give a decision then the proposals require further discussion throughout the federation and fail at this time.
Action Points
When a proposal is passed by an WMAF it is expected that those at the WMAF will agree upon a set of action points that will be undertaken. These are the activities that members volunteer to take on to enact the proposal. These will be added to the minutes and considered part of the decision that is to be ratified.
Action points will be logged and monitored by the facilitator, who will provide an open record of any decisions relevant to the federation and any action points still outstanding on the internal forums.