For our Post to remain viable and operate, its membership must elect the following officers: Commander
Senior Vice Commander
Junior Vice Commander
Quartermaster
Chaplain
Trustees (1,2, and 3 years).
The Post may elect or the Commander may appoint a Judge Advocate, Surgeon, Officer of the Day, Adjutant, and Service Officer.
The order of VFW Post Officer nominations is as follows:
The Post Commander will ask for nominations for each Post Office three times before moving to the next Post Officer Position. Any Post Veteran member in good standing is eligible to be nominated (and to vote in each year’s election). Any Veteran member of the VFW Post can nominate another member for an elected officer position. The member being nominated must accept the nomination in person during the meeting or have the nominating member present to the Adjutant, in writing, the nominee’s acceptance and consent of said nomination.
Nominations will remain open until the election of each office at the Election meeting.
The election will follow the same order as nominations – starting with the election of VFW Post Commander down through the election of VFW Post Three Year Trustee.
All Veteran members in good standing are welcome to vote – essentially, that means that the member cannot be suspended under Article IX, must be current on his or her dues, and must be a member of the Post. Votes must be cast in-person – absentee and proxy voting are NOT permitted.
A majority vote of all present members is required to be elected. In the case where a member is running uncontested for a Post Office at the time when nominations for that office closes, one unanimous vote must be cast by a present member in order for the member to be elected. In the event that an election for a specific office is contested, present members will cast their vote. If a majority vote of all members is not reached during the first round of voting, the member with the lowest votes will be dropped, and the present members will recast their votes during the second round of voting. This process will repeat itself until a member receives a majority of all votes or if the field is narrowed down to two candidates and a tie has been determined. In the case of the latter, the tie-breaking procedure will be followed in order to determine the winner of the election.
Subsequently, the House Committee is formed by either a vote or by unanimous consent. The Post Commander will serve as the President of the Board, The Sr. Vice will serve as the Vice President; The Jr vice will serve as a board member; The Quartermaster will serve as the Treasurer, The Adjutant will serve as the Secretary, and a Manager is hired. Other members may be elected or serve as committee members as required.
There are some situations wherein a member cannot hold an office or wherein a member may have to forfeit an office that he or she was elected to, such as:
No member can hold two elected Post Officer positions at the same time; however, he or she may hold an appointed office or office while also holding one (1) elected office.
Many Post Members want to be active, but they may not know what duties come with each VFW Post Officer position. Here is a summary of the primary roles that each officer is responsible for:
The Commander presides over all Post meetings. He or she upholds the VFW National and Department Bylaws and Manual of Procedure and ensures that Post business is not in violation of local, state, or federal laws. The Post Commander ensures that all reports are correct, that Post money is accounted for, and that the three Post Trustees examine the books and records on a quarterly basis. He or she must attend or ensure proper Post representative attends all District and applicable Department meetings.
The Senior Vice Commander assists the Commander to ensure the Post is run in a proper and efficient manner. He or she helps to preserve order and presides over meetings in the absence of the Post Commander. At most Posts, he or she is also directly responsible for VFW Post Membership growth and outreach, but this specific role is at the discretion of the Post Commander.
The Junior Vice Commander also assists the Commander to ensure the Post is run in a proper and efficient manner. He or she helps to preserve order and presides over meetings when the Post Commander and Senior Vice Commander are unable to attend. At most Posts, he or she is also directly responsible for the local VFW Post Programs and Community Outreach, but this specific role is at the discretion of the Post Commander.
The Quartermaster must collect all money for the Post account for the money, and report to the Post about the funds available in all Post banking accounts. He or she disburses funds when properly authorized by the Post, makes sure that all appropriate bills are paid on time. The Post Quartermaster must reconcile all financial transactions, secure a bond, receive all annual membership dues, and file all tax documents to Federal, State, and Local authorities. Lastly, he or she is the treasurer of the House Committee (if the Post has a House Committee) and provides all Post Trustees with the appropriate financial records and files required to effectively conduct the quarterly Post Audits.
The Chaplain performs all duties incidental to the office. This typically includes reaching out to those Post members in distress. He or she submits monthly reports to the District Chaplain. The Post Chaplain leads all prayers during Post meetings and officiates during memorial services as the need arises.
The three Trustees are responsible for reviewing receipt reporting and expenditures monthly. Additionally, they must conduct a proper Post Audit within 30 days of the close of each quarter. Typically, the position is a three-year commitment; hence, a Post usually must only elect a new three-year Post Trustee as the current Trustees move to the next respective year designation [with the one-year Trustee dropping off]. Trustees are not allowed to serve as Post Adjutant or on committees whose books, records, or accounts are audited on a quarterly basis by the Trustees.
Want to learn more? Get an electronic Kindle copy of the latest edition of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Congressional Charter, By-Laws, Manual of Procedure, and Ritual from Amazon. The great thing about the electronic version is that you can search for terms like "nomination” and "election.” Additionally, you can access these by-laws from any smartphone, tablet, laptop, or desktop computer from the comfort of anywhere!