The Washington-Baltimore News Guild will have a new treasurer for the two-year term that starts Jan. 31. Justin Moyer of the Washington Post defeated incumbent treasurer Tim Fitzgerald of the American Postal Workers Union, 303-76, in mail voting by WBNG members earlier in January.
WBNG incumbent secretary David DeJesus (Washington Post) defeated challenger Joel Gratz (AFL-CIO), 274-103.
Executive Council member Steve Cook (Bloomberg Bureau of National Affairs) ran unopposed for president, and incumbent WBNG vice president Elise Bryant (at-large) ran unopposed for vice president, and were elected by acclamation.
For five at-large delegate seats on the WBNG Executive Council, Fatima Hussein (Bloomberg BNA), the former president of the Guild local in Indianapolis before taking a job with BBNA, topped all candidates with 286 votes. Others elected to the Executive Council were Hau Chu (Washington Post), 261 votes; Katie Mettler (Washington Post), 252; LaTisha Harvey (BBNA), 249; and Michelle Wang (Radio Free Asia), 171. All will be serving their first term on the Executive Council.
Finishing out of the running were all Executive Council members: Gabe Gonzalez (AFL-CIO), 162; outgoing president Robert Struckman (AFL-CIO), 143; Struckman’s predecessor as president, Sheila Lindsay (American Nurses Association), 126; Jazmin Gargoum (at-large), 80; and Matt Losak (at-large), 59.
Balloting was conducted entirely through the mail — which may be a first in WBNG history — by the American Arbitration Association, as authorized in the fall by the WBNG Executive Council. Tabulation of the ballots was conducted Jan. 29 in WBNG’s Washington office under the direction of the local’s Election and Referendum Committee: Mark Pattison (Catholic News Service), chair; Tammara Madison and Peter Brusoe (BBNA), Amy Lampkin (AFL-CIO) and Sam Nelson (Jobs With Justice), members.
Of WBNG’s 1,694 members, 394, or 23.28 percent of the electorate, cast ballots. This does not include four other ballots, which were spoiled and could not be counted. There were no challenged ballots in this election.