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Election Regulations

The German Academy of Natural Scientists Leopoldina (Deutsche Akademie der Naturforscher Leopoldina e.V.), which is also the German National Academy of Sciences (hereinafter: the Academy), adopts the following Election Regulations on the basis of and as a supplement to its Statutes. These Election Regulations were last amended in certain passages on 19 September 2013, 17 September 2015 and 28 September 2023 and adopted by the Senate.

Chapter One
The election of new members

The purpose of admitting new members to the Academy, i.e. the election of scientists, is to be able to perform the tasks of the National Academy set out in the Statutes at any time.

§ 1 The potential for election

1. In consultation with the Senate, the Presidium determines the number of members under 75 years of age for each Class (guideline figure). Upon reaching the age of 75, a member’s seat becomes vacant and may be filled. The rights of these members remain unaffected.
2. In addition, a maximum of five candidates nominated by the Member Selection Committee may be elected per year.

§ 2 Conflicts of interest in the context of election

In the interest of transparency and in order to take possible conflicts of interest in the election procedure into account, the following conflict of interest criteria are defined in particular:
1. Kinship, close personal ties or personal conflicts
2. Existing, planned or recently concluded close scientific collaborations, e.g. implementation of joint projects or joint publication within the last five years
3. Affiliation with the same scientific institution (institute/faculty) or imminent transfer of the member to the respective institution
4. Employment dependency or supervisory relationship (e.g. teacher-student relationship) within the last six years; doctoral supervisor relationship without time limit
5. Own economic interests in the nomination decision

§ 3 Nomination procedure

1. Candidates can be nominated for election in two ways. The following principles apply to both ways:

a. The nominees for election should distinguish themselves through significant scientific achievements. Candidates must not be informed of a nomination at any stage of the election procedure.
b. Nominations with detailed written reasons can be submitted by any Leopoldina member. A nomination must be signed by at least three members, at least two of whom must belong to the Section to which the election is to be made.
c. The nominating persons declare in the nomination form their possible conflicts of interest pursuant to points 1-5 set out in § 2. For a nomination to be effective, none of the nominating members should meet any of the criteria for conflicts of interest set out in § 2. In the event that one or more criteria are met by a nominating person, the criteria met must be assessed for their impact on the nomination in the deliberation of the Section’s Working Group and in the Second and Third Readings. This assessment must be recorded in the minutes of the meetings.
d. A submission must be addressed to the General Secretariat and must include a complete and signed nomination form, a laudatory text, a short curriculum vitae and a complete list of publications by the candidate. It should only be done after consultation with the Section representatives.

2. Nomination via the Sections of the Academy

a. Each Section sets up a Working Group which, in addition to the Section representative and his/her deputy, normally includes at least two other members of the Section. This Working Group meets at least once a year. It shall, inter alia, prepare all nominations for the Section in accordance with § 4 (1) of these Regulations and shall forward the minutes of the meeting to the General Secretariat.
b. The members of the Section Working Group declare any conflict of interest as set out in § 2 of these Election Regulations in the minutes of the meeting and, in the event of a conflict of interest, may participate in all discussions but may not take part in decisions.

3. Nomination via the Member Selection Committee appointed by the Presidium

a. The Presidium may appoint a Member Selection Committee with the task of identifying suitable candidates for election in interdisciplinary scientific fields that are not sufficiently covered by the Sections, or candidates who have distinguished themselves beyond their scientific achievements by their outstanding commitment to the scientific system.
b. The composition of the Member Selection Committee, its procedures, formalities and rules on conflicts of interest are based on the regular nomination procedure via the Sections. The details are set out in the Rules of Procedure of the Member Selection Committee of the Presidium of the Leopoldina.
c. The Member Selection Committee submits its nominations to the Presidium, which must be supported by a majority of the members of the Committee by secret ballot. The meetings must be minuted.

§ 4 The election procedure

The election procedure is divided into three Readings. In the First Reading, a written assessment of the nominations is made by the Section members. In the following Second Reading, all candidates for election are discussed and ranked in a Class meeting on the basis of the assessments. The final step of the election procedure is the Third Reading. Hereby, the Presidium extends itself to include the responsible Class Spokesperson and the responsible Section representative and decides on the election. Nominations by the Member Selection Committee are handled directly in the Third Reading.

1. First Reading

a. Following discussion and assessment in the Section Working Group, the Office of the Secretary General forwards all nominations to all members of the Section concerned for evaluation.
b. The members of a Section evaluate the candidates according to a points system and by giving reasons:

  • 5 (highest priority admission)
  • 4 (high priority admission)
  • 3 (medium priority admission)
  • 2 (low priority admission)
  • 1 (lowest priority admission)
  • Rejection (reasons for rejection must be given in each case)

Abstentions are not possible.

c. Each Section must achieve the quorum of two-thirds of all members of the Section who have not yet reached the age of 75 in order to be able to submit its nominations to the Second Reading.
d. The Section members must disclose any conflicts of interest pursuant to § 2 in their evaluation and, in the event of a conflict of interest, may give a verbal assessment on the nominee, but not an evaluation. The vote of a member who expressed a conflict of interest is nevertheless counted towards the quorum for the election.
e. The members submit their evaluations, including the justification, to the Academy’s Elections Office within the specified time.
f. The evaluations, including the reasons, are collected in the Elections Office and are only accessible in their original form to the Elections Office, the President and the secretary of the Class and the respective Section representative and his/her deputy.
g. The other Section representatives and their deputies as well as the Class Spokesperson and his/her deputy and the members of the Presidium receive an anonymised overview of the evaluations.

2. Second Reading

In the Second Reading, there is an oral discussion on all candidates. The Class compiles a ranking of candidates on the basis of the places available and the scientific orientation of the Section and the Class deemed appropriate. The final vote on this is by secret ballot; each Section has one vote. Sections that are not represented or have a conflict of interest at a Second Reading do not have a vote.

a. The responsible Section representatives present the nomination and the facts for the vote in the Second Reading. It is possible to have deputies or members of the respective Section represent the Section representative. At the Second Reading, all representatives of the Sections to which the election is to take place and their deputies are present. The meeting is chaired by the elected Class Spokesperson or, if the Class Spokesperson is unable to attend, by the deputy Class Spokesperson.
b. The Office of the Secretary General invites the responsible secretary, the Secretary General and, if applicable, the responsible scientific officer as guests to the Second Reading. The Second Reading must be minuted.
c. Any conflict of interest must be reported to the Office of the Secretary General in advance. In the event of knowledge of unauthorised participation in voting, the election must be reviewed.
d. The attendees of the Second Reading must disclose any conflicts of interest pursuant to § 2 at the meeting at the latest and, in the event of a conflict of interest, may participate in all discussions but may not introduce the candidates or participate in the voting. Votes cast in spite of this are invalid.
e. The allocation of Sections to classes is provided in Appendix I to these Election Regulations.

3. Third Reading

a. In an extended meeting, which is usually held once a year, the Presidium decides for each Class on the election of the individual candidates nominated for that Class. If necessary, the Presidium may obtain expert opinions. In addition, the Presidium usually decides once a year in an extended meeting on the election of the candidates proposed by the Member Selection Committee.
b. Any conflict of interest must be reported to the Office of the Secretary General in advance. In the event of knowledge of unauthorised participation in voting, the election must be reviewed.
c. All members of the extended Presidium must disclose any conflicts of interest pursuant to § 2 at the meeting at the latest and, in the event of a conflict of interest, may participate in all discussions but may not introduce the candidates or take part in the voting. Votes cast in spite of this are invalid.
d. Voting usually takes place after discussion of all candidates of a Section or the candidates of the Member Selection Committee in a joint ballot.
e. In the election meeting with the Member Selection Committee, the chairperson of the Member Selection Committee and the deputies present the evaluations of the Committee. All other members of the Member Selection Committee must be invited as guests.
f. Voting must be by secret ballot for each individual candidate. For each candidate, a decision must be made on whether to accept, reject or defer the election. Any election requires the consent of two-thirds of all those present and entitled to vote who do not have a conflict of interest.
g. For the deferral of a candidate more than half of the votes, for the rejection at least half of all votes are required.
h. If no decision on the three categories of election, deferral and rejection is possible in the first vote, a second vote follows in which only deferral or rejection can be voted on.
i. The members of the Presidium, the responsible Class Spokesperson (or his/her deputy or a member of the Sections of the respective Class) and the responsible Section representative of the Section in which a candidate is to be admitted (or his/her deputy or another member of the respective Section) or the chairperson of the Member Selection Committee and his/her deputy (or, in their place, other members of the Member Selection Committee) are entitled to vote.
j. The committee is quorate if at least seven members of the Presidium, the Class Spokesperson or the deputy and a representative of the relevant Section or a representative of the Member Selection Committee are present.
k. Of the seven or more Presidium members present, at least six must agree to an election for it to be valid. With regard to any conflict of interest, § 4 (3) b) applies.

4. Election notification and execution of the election

a. The President notifies the elected candidates of their election in writing, informing them in detail about the aims, structures and tasks of the Leopoldina and at the same time asking them whether they are prepared to actively participate in the tasks of the Academy and to which Section they wish to belong.
b. Secondary membership in another Section is possible for all members. In this Section, the member has no voting rights, but holds an advisory function. The Office of the Secretary General must be informed informally of the commencement of a secondary membership.
c. The election is completed when the candidate has accepted the election in writing. The election is deemed not to have been accepted if no written consent is given within the specified period. The Class Spokesperson, the Section representatives and the nominators will be informed about the result. If the candidate has been proposed through the Member Selection Committee, the latter shall be informed.

Chapter Two
Election of Section representatives, Class Spokespersons and adjuncts

§ 1 Election of Section representatives

1. All members of a Section elect a member of their Section as Section representative by secret ballot. All members, regardless of age, are eligible for election and may be re-elected once. The term of office is four years. The formal procedure for exercising the right to vote is based on the provisions of the Statutes. Voting by postal ballot is possible.
2. The election is initiated by the Office of the Secretary General, which justifies the need for the election to the members of the Section and communicates the members standing for election. Ballot papers can be used for this purpose.
3. The willingness to stand for election as Section representative or deputy representative must be declared by the respective Section member to the Office of the Secretary General.
4. All Section members elect their Section representative from among the candidates by clearly marking the name and sending the decision to the General Secretariat within four weeks. The person who receives the most votes is elected as Section representative. In the event of a tie, the Presidium has the casting vote. The election of the deputy takes place analogously to the election of the Section representative in a separate ballot. Both ballots can be held together.
5. The Presidium is responsible for monitoring the election process, verifying the regularity of the election and confirming the elected Section representatives.

§ 2 Election of Class Spokespersons

1. Each Section belongs to a Class according to its disciplinary orientation (see Appendix I of these Election Regulations). The Class is the structural unit in which the Section representatives and their deputies rank the new members proposed by the Sections (First Reading) once a year in the Second Reading.
2. All the Section representatives of a Class and their deputies elect by secret ballot one member of the Sections located in the respective Class as Class Spokesperson. The term of office is four years. Re-election is permitted once. The formal procedure for exercising the right to vote is based on the provisions of the Statutes. Voting by postal ballot is possible.
3. The election is initiated by the Office of the Secretary General, which justifies the need for the election to the members and communicates the members standing for election (see Section Two, § 2 (2)). Ballot papers can be used for this purpose.
4. The willingness to stand for election as Class Spokesperson or deputy Class Spokesperson must be declared by the respective member to the Office of the Secretary General.
5. The election is made by clearly marking the name and sending the decision to the Office of the Secretary General within four weeks. The person who receives the most votes is elected as Class Spokesperson. In the event of a tie, the Presidium has the casting vote. The election of the deputy takes place analogously to the election of the Class Spokesperson in a separate ballot. Both ballots can be held together.
6. The Presidium is responsible for monitoring the election process, verifying the regularity of the election and confirming the elected Class Spokesperson.

§ 3 Election of adjuncts (Regional Executive Boards)

1. In Austria and Switzerland, the Academy is organised into two Adjunct Circles.
2. The members belonging to the respective Adjunct Circle elect one full member of their Adjunct Circle as adjunct in a secret ballot, which is usually conducted as a postal ballot. Prior to the election, the Presidium obtains the consent of the eligible members who, if elected, will also accept the office.
3. The election of the adjuncts and their deputies is conducted in the same way as the election of the Section representatives.

Chapter Three
Election of senators and members of the Presidium

§ 1 Election of senators

1. The elected Section representative is also a senator (§ 7 (1) a) of the Statutes).
2. The two adjuncts for Austria and Switzerland are also senators (§ 7 (1) b) of the Statutes).
3. Up to ten additional senators (§ 7 (1) c) of the Statutes) are elected by the Senate for four years on the proposal of the Presidium. Re-election is permitted once.
4. Five of these latter senators are to have seats and votes in the Senate of the Leopoldina as representatives of the scientifically interested public, and a further five ex officio as presidential representatives of the following institutions:

  • German Research Foundation
  • Max Planck Society
  • German Rectors’ Conference
  • Alexander von Humboldt Foundation
  • Union of the German Academies of Sciences and Humanities.

§ 2 Election of Presidium members

1. The Senate formed in accordance with § 7 of the Statutes and Section Three § 1 of these Election Regulations elects the Presidium in accordance with § 6 sentence 1 of the Statutes. All members, regardless of age, are eligible for election. The term of office is five years, re-election is possible once.
2. The election of the President and Vice-Presidents must be prepared by a finding committee appointed by the Presidium. The members of the finding committee are:

  • the President (not in the finding committee for presidential candidates) and the Vice-Presidents, (if elected, the secretary closest to the area of the person to be elected takes over this task.)
  • the four Class Spokespersons and
  • the two Presidium members from Austria and Switzerland or two other Leopoldina members.
  • In the case of the election of the President, the finding committee also includes three ex officio senators.
  • The Secretary General is part of the finding committee in an advisory capacity.
  • The committee is chaired by the President or the longest-serving Vice-President.
  • In the event of a tie, the Presidium decides by simple majority.

3. All senators and the members of the Presidium are entitled to nominate candidates.
4. Proposals are addressed to the finding committee. The latter draws up a proposal and submits it in writing to the members of the Senate in good time before the ballot. A separate ballot is required for each seat on the Presidium; block voting is not permitted.
5. The finding committee for the other Presidium members is the Presidium.
6. The Senate is quorate if more than half of the senators are present (or participate in the ballot in writing). The person who receives more than half of the votes cast is elected. If none of the candidates obtains more than half of the votes cast, a second ballot is held in which only the two candidates who obtained the most votes in the first ballot are nominated. The candidate is elected with a simple majority of votes; in the event of a tie, the decision is made by a draw.

Chapter Four
Discharge and termination of membership

§ 1 Discharge

Upon application, a member may be discharged from duty for a limited period of time or permanently. The Presidium decides on the acceptance of the application. All electoral rights and duties lapse thereby. In the event of discharge for life, the place is vacated for a new member.

§ 2 Termination of membership

The membership ends upon:
1. Death of the member.
2. Resignation from the Academy declared in writing to the President. The President is entitled to ask for the reasons for the resignation of the member.
3. Expulsion from the Academy. A prerequisite for the initiation of proceedings for the expulsion of a member is that at least ten members apply for expulsion to the President with detailed written reasons. The President must examine the circumstances. A written statement of the Section representative in charge and, if applicable, of the adjunct must be obtained. The President brings the matter to the attention of the Presidium, which examines whether and in what way the Academy has suffered damage. The member concerned shall issue his/her statement to the Presidium in writing – or, at his/her request, orally. Should the Presidium determine by majority vote that there are sufficient grounds for exclusion, the motion for exclusion with detailed reasons must be announced to the Senate, which  decides on the exclusion in a written voting procedure with a simple majority in accordance with § 7 (1) of the Statutes. Appeals against this decision are excluded.

Miscellaneous

These Election Regulations enter into force on 28 September 2023 after adoption by the Senate and replace the Election Regulations of 27 November 2015.

Election Regulations

Election Regulations of the Leopoldina as PDF (as of 28 September 2023):

Election Regulations

CONTACT

Leopoldina

Dr. Jörg Beineke

Senior Scientific Coordinator

Phone 0345 47 239 - 954
Fax 0345 47 239 - 919
E-Mail joerg.beineke (at)leopoldina.org