OTW Elections: And then there were five edition

Effective this morning, Lucy Pearson has withdrawn her candidacy for a seat on the OTW Board.


Speaking personally, I'm incredibly disappointed that the OTW won't get the chance to, potentially, have Pearson on the Board; I continue to believe that she would have been a strong and effective Board member, and I can only wish her the best in personal life and career.

In light of Pearson's withdrawal, I am changing my election endorsements.They are:

• Julia Beck
• Betsy Rosenblatt
• Nikisha Sanders
• Jenny Scott-Thompson

I think it's important to make clear that I strongly considered re-making only three endorsements, but in the end I believe that (particularly in light of the OTW's usage of preferential voting in its balloting) I need to make an endorsement for that fourth seat, because there is definitely one candidate whom I believe shouldn't be in it. My reasons for declining to endorse Naomi Novik, and encouraging people to vote against Novik in the election, have not changed.

I am, however, reasonably confident that Betsy Rosenblatt can be an effective Board member in concert with the other three candidates I have previously endorsed. As people have pointed out, she clearly studied up between the first and second candidate Q&A sections, and her answers in the second Q&A indicate that she is willing to put real thought into the OTW's issues and to consider suggestions, which are vital characteristics in the 2012 Board. 

ira_gladkova has put together Candidate profiles aggregating what the Board candidates have said so far; I encourage you to check them out, and to read bookshop's post OTW Elections! Now with less confusion! if you haven't already.