AEA President election?

[Call_me_jorge]

Posted: 5/24/20 at 12:11am

I knew there was an actors equity election coming soon, but I thought Kate Shindle was running unopposed. That was until I found this post from Patti Murin where she endorsed Stephen Bogardus. Does anyone know if Bogardus poses a real threat to Kate Shindle? I thought Kate Shindle was a pretty popular leader.

[fashionguru_23]

Posted: 5/24/20 at 8:48pm

I'm not a member of the union or an actor, however, I have been noticing a lot of support posts on social media from different actors I follow (Chita, Julia Murney, Victoria Clark) for different people (Stephen Bogardus, Dee Hoty, Victoria Clark)...is there a reason why there is a big push for this election, or is it that with Covid happening there is more time to promote/endorse candidates? It just seems odd to me.

[Broadway61004]

Posted: 5/24/20 at 8:53pm

fashionguru_23 said: "I'm not a member of the union or an actor, however, I have been noticing a lot of support posts on social media from different actors I follow (Chita, Julia Murney, Victoria Clark)for different people (Stephen Bogardus, Dee Hoty, Victoria Clark)...is there a reason why there is a big push for this election, or is it that with Covid happening there is more time to promote/endorse candidates? It just seems odd to me."

I think it's a really important election in that these will be the folks leading the union post-covid when realistically a lot of actors will be out of work, a lot of Equity houses will have either closed or downsized, Broadway will of course have changed, etc. So a lot of issues facing union members and a lot of big decisions that will have to be made by the new leadership, so I think a lot of union members are taking this one far more seriously than any other ordinary election.

[HelloMuchBetter]

Posted: 5/24/20 at 9:17pm

Different people are running for different positions--that's why you're seeing so many different names tossed around. Shindle/Bogardus are both running for President, Dee Hoty is running for Eastern VP, Victoria Clark for Eastern Principal, etc. 

AEA holds elections every two years (though not every position has a two year term--some are longer). There's been more of a push this election season to make sure that members are aware and have their addresses updated due to COVID, since voting is with a paper ballot only and it can only be sent to the address on file, and many people are not sheltering at their registered address. The flurry of endorsements, etc, is pretty standard, too. 

[DiscoCrows]

Posted: 6/18/20 at 10:50pm

Tonight is/was tabulation day for the most recent elections.

Does anyone have any information about results, whether President position or anything else?

Updated On: 6/18/20 at 10:50 PM

[Fosse76]

Posted: 6/19/20 at 2:09pm

If you are not a member of AEA, it's not really any of your business. That said, the results have been posted on the AEA Member's portal.

[HogansHero]

Posted: 6/19/20 at 2:22pm

Fosse76 said: "If you are not a member of AEA, it's not really any of your business."

Seriously? How much sillier could you get on a Friday afternoon?

[Fosse76]

Posted: 6/19/20 at 2:25pm

HogansHero said: "Fosse76 said: "If you are not a member of AEA, it's not really any of your business."

Seriously? How much sillier could you get on a Friday afternoon?"

If he's not a dues paying member,  it's none of his business. And AEA clearly agrees,  otherwise it would have been publicly announced. 

[HogansHero]

Posted: 6/19/20 at 2:34pm

Fosse76 said: "HogansHero said: "Fosse76 said: "If you are not a member of AEA, it's not really any of your business."

Seriously? How much sillier could you get on a Friday afternoon?"

If he's not a dues paying member, it's none of his business. And AEA clearly agrees, otherwise it would have been publicly announced."

Guess again but in any event you could not be wrong-er. It is legally required to be public information. 

[Broadway61004]

Posted: 6/19/20 at 2:42pm

Yes, they are legally required to announce it publicly, and it's here now:

https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/Kate-Shindle-Voted-to-Remain-President-of-Actors-Equity-Association-20200619

[Ravenclaw]

Posted: 6/19/20 at 4:45pm

HogansHero said: "Fosse76 said: "HogansHero said: "Fosse76 said: "If you are not a member of AEA, it's not really any of your business."

Seriously? How much sillier could you get on a Friday afternoon?"

If he's not a dues paying member, it's none of his business. And AEA clearly agrees, otherwise it would have been publicly announced."

Guess again but in any event you could not be wrong-er. It is legally required to be public information."

And the (relatively) recent moves of Equity to hide more information behind its members-only portal has been damaging for potential/future Equity members and other professionals in the industry. Young actors striving to become Equity should be able to know what's in the Equity handbook, how much an Equity minimum at different theaters around the country is, etc. And many non-Equity theater companies model their contracts and agreements on Equity's as much as they can afford to. Likewise, it's important for non union members to know who the leadership is of the union they hope to join. I say this as a young theatre professional with many actor friends (most of them EMCs) who have been very frustrated by the union's lack of transparency in recent years.

[bwaylvsong]

Posted: 6/20/20 at 1:30am

Ravenclaw said: And the (relatively) recent moves of Equity to hide more information behind its members-only portal has been damaging for potential/future Equity members and other professionals in the industry. Young actors striving to become Equity should be able to know what's in the Equity handbook, how much an Equity minimum at different theaters around the country is, etc. And many non-Equity theater companies model their contracts and agreements on Equity's as much as they can afford to. Likewise, it's important for non union members to know who the leadership is of the union they hope to join. I say this as a young theatre professional with many actor friends (most of them EMCs) who have been very frustrated by the union's lack of transparency in recent years."

I totally agree!  And moving the audition postings into the member portal was a step in the wrong direction in being welcoming to actors who are actively trying to join the union.  It’s an incredibly frustrating and in many ways unfair process, and it only gets worse and worse every year.  I’m hoping that the changes we’re going through as a society will translate to changes in how the union operates in general, but particularly its path to membership.

[broadwayguy2]

Posted: 6/20/20 at 2:06am

Truth. 
As someone who works in a fair number of mixed-status productions, it is frustration to see Non-Union members taking an active interest in pursuing Equity membership Only to be disheartened by Equity’s astoundingly cold treatment and behavior. 
They really have harmed themselves with the next wave coming in...and COVID has only made it worse.

As far as the elections go, EVERY Equity member taking an active part has VERY MUCH been encouraging non-Union SMS and actors to pay close attention and to lean in for these elections and that has only increased as 2020 has worsened, so yes. Even if you are not currently Equity, this election is critical information as it will help shape our industry recovery and the information IS public,

[Fosse76]

Posted: 6/20/20 at 2:03pm

HogansHero said: "Fosse76 said: "HogansHero said: "Fosse76 said: "If you are not a member of AEA, it's not really any of your business."

Seriously? How much sillier could you get on a Friday afternoon?"

If he's not a dues paying member, it's none of his business. And AEA clearly agrees, otherwise it would have been publicly announced."

Guess again but in any event you could not be wrong-er. It is legally required to be public information."

They are required to disclose to the Department of Labor. And while that information is available to the public,  they certainly aren't required fo issue a press release for mass consumption. And if you aren't a member of that union,  what business of it is yours?

[WayTooBroadway]

Posted: 6/20/20 at 2:17pm

If you aren’t a Tony voter, what business of yours is the Tony Awards? If you aren’t a doctor, what business of yours is to question your healthcare provider? If you aren’t a Republican, what business of yours is the Republican nominee?

The list goes on. Get a grip and get lost.

[HogansHero]

Posted: 6/20/20 at 2:18pm

Fosse76 said: "They are required to disclose to the Department of Labor. And while that information is available to the public, they certainly aren't required fo issue a press release for mass consumption. And if you aren't a member of that union, what business of it is yours?"

So you have chosen to double down on the silliness. Suffice it to say that you have no idea what you are talking about. And your interest in turning the union into Scull and Bones is pretty comical. As I have learned the hard way, sometimes silence is the most graceful way of avoiding further embarrassment. 

[Fosse76]

Posted: 6/22/20 at 12:35pm

HogansHero said: "Fosse76 said: "They are required to disclose to the Department of Labor. And while that information is available to the public, they certainly aren't required fo issue a press release for mass consumption. And if you aren't a member of that union, what business of it is yours?"

So you have chosen to double down on the silliness. Suffice it to say that you have no idea what you are talking about. And your interest in turning the union into Scull and Bones is pretty comical. As I have learned the hard way, sometimes silence is the most graceful way of avoiding further embarrassment."

You're the one that doesn't know what he's talking about. The law is very easy to find. But I'm merely a federal prosecutor, what would I know about the law. 

Updated On: 6/22/20 at 12:35 PM

[HogansHero]

Posted: 6/22/20 at 3:03pm

Fosse76 said: "You're the one that doesn't know what he's talking about. The law is very easy to find. But I'm merely a federal prosecutor, what would I know about the law."

Apparently not enough. If you are telling the truth then that is a pretty bad indictment of the hiring practices of your office because, guess what, you're still dead wrong.