The North Western Electric Cooperative Board of Trustees is a group of seven member-owners who are elected by their fellow member-owners to serve three-year terms. Their duty is setting policies and making decisions for the continuation of the cooperative and as an elected representative that are accountable to the membership.
At the annual meeting held in March of April (with preference given to April), the member-owners are invited to vote for candidates from two or sometimes three districts. At the 2023 annual meeting, candidates from the following three districts will be on the ballot:
- District 4 comprised of Brady, Center, Jefferson and Pulaski townships in Williams County.
- District 5 comprised of Farmer and Mark townships in Defiance County and Crane Township in Paulding County.
- District 6 comprised of Springfield Township in Williams County, Adams and Tiffin townships in Defiance County and Ridgeville Township in Henry County.
The incumbents in each of these districts are eligible and have chosen to remain a candidate and will automatically be placed on the ballot. The incumbents are Chris Oberlin, for District 4; Ryan Wehri, for District 5; and Jordan Ruffer, for District 6. To learn more about these incumbents, visit the Meet Your Trustees page.
If there are no qualifying petitions received for a particular district then the incumbent shall be considered elected by affirmation and no election shall be deemed necessary for that district.
The Petition Process
The process for those member-owners who are not currently serving on the Board to become a candidate for the North Western Electric Cooperative, Inc. Board of Trustees is described in ARTICLE IV, Section 4 of the Code of Regulations. It required eligible member-owners who were interested in being placed on the Official Ballot to submit the official petition forms to the NWEC office by January 23, 2023.
All petitions received will be verified and only those meeting the qualifications will be placed on the ballot for the 2023 election. The official list of eligible candidates will be posted on January 23rd.
If you have any questions regarding the election process, please contact our office.