A vote No/Withhold is a vote of no confidence in the Board of Directors


What the 2025 withhold negative vote expresses is not only a refusal of the candidates it is also a clear vote of no confidence in the board's capacity to choose adequate candidates.

The board completely refused to take into account this loss of confidence by co-opting 3  months later 3 new board members without having their nomination approved by a vote of the membership as apparently the present bylaws allows them to do. 

The board seems to believe it can proceed that way without consequences on its legitimacy. 

I think the 6 board members who took this decision and the CEO who supported it are very wrong and the 2026 election, if it delivers again a strong vote of no confidence will make it more obvious even if they persist in asserting their authority by co-opting again new board members after a defeat at the election. 

The writing is on the wall: they are doomed. 

Their refusal to admit they have lost the confidence of the membership and therefore the right to make such nominating decisions will sooner or later bring them down. 

What use is there for an annual election if the board refuses to admit a no vote obliges them not to co-opt new board members without having them being elected.  

The board members have to be approved by a vote of the membership assembly. 

A board that would be composed of a majority or a totality of directors not supported by an election would have no legitimacy to run the coop, whatever the interpretation of the present bylaws is. It is clear the directors never imagined they could suffer repetitive complete withhold votes that are repetitive votes of no confidence they cannot ignore the way they did in 2025. 

If the same vote of no confidence wins in 2026, game is over, the king is naked.

 Even if the present oligarchs repeat their abusive use of cooptation in 2026, they'll not survive such a disgrace and abuse of power.


Credit: Illustration by Alicia Rivero

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