LPEA discovered an inconsistency between one of LPEA’s bylaws and Colorado state law on March 4. This inconsistency led to potential candidates not having the full time to seek signatures on petitions allowed by law. To meet LPEA’s stated goal from Policy 105 of ensuring “the fairness of elections, impartiality, confidentiality, transparency, and integrity of the voting process,” the LPEA Board of Directors voted on March 13 to continue LPEA’s Annual Meeting to September 18. This will allow all potential candidates the full amount of time they are entitled to for their election campaigns.

 

Thank you for your interest in running for a seat on the La Plata Electric Association, Inc. (LPEA) Board of Directors. In accordance with our bylaws, one-third of LPEA’s Board of Directors seats are up for election annually, one in each voting district. Directors are elected for three-year terms. The incumbent directors up for re-election in 2024 are:   

District 1 – Archuleta County: Kirsten Skeehan 
District 2 – South and West La Plata County: Kohler McInnis 
District 3 – City of Durango: Ted Compton 
District 4 – North and East La Plata County: Tim Wheeler 

To be eligible to run for the LPEA Board of Directors, candidates must:  

  • be a member of LPEA for at least one year immediately prior to becoming a director;  
  • be a bona fide resident of the district you plan to represent for at least 120 days prior to becoming a director and;  
  • not be employed by, or have a spouse or child employed by, LPEA in any position.  

2024 Election Timeline  

March 19, 2024: Application period opens for the LPEA Board of Directors   
July 22, 2024: Applications due to LPEA    
Before August 19, 2024: Ballots mailed to all LPEA members    
September 9, 2024: Interim Director Candidate Financials Disclosures due
September 17, 2024: Ballots due    
September 18, 2024: LPEA Annual Meeting – election results announced   
September 30, 2024: Final Director Candidate Financial Disclosure Forms due  
October 16, 2024: First board meeting for new directors   
   

Procedures and Deadlines 

To be deemed an eligible candidate, you must:  

Meet the eligibility requirements as outlined above.  

Complete the online application form at the bottom of this page and hand-deliver or mail the 2024 Petition for Election to the Board of Directors with 15+ signatures by 1 p.m. on July 22, 2024. Copies will not be accepted.  

Mail to: LPEA, 45 Stewart Street, Durango, CO 81303  

Deliver to: above address OR 603 S 8th St. Pagosa Springs  

If you wish to receive a member mailing list for your district or other available items as referenced in Policy 108, you must complete the Request to Inspect or Copy Corporate Records form and associated Non-Disclosure Agreement and Affidavit forms and email to boardcandidate@lpea.coop by 1 p.m. on July 22, 2024.  

Submit the interim Director Candidate Financial Disclosure Form to boardcandidate@lpea.coop no earlier than September 3, 2024, and no later than September 9, 2024.  

Submit the final Director Candidate Financial Disclosure Form to boardcandidate@lpea.coop no later than September 30, 2024.  

Candidates who are verified as eligible and have completed all required materials by the listed deadlines will be added to the official ballot. 

Printable Form

 

Board of Directors Additional Information

The Board of Directors of LPEA is established by the LPEA Bylaws. The board meet at least monthly, and more frequently when determined necessary. 

The board sets strategic direction and establishes policy. It is responsible for hiring and evaluating the CEO, and for developing and approving the Mission and Vision statements and Strategic Plan. The CEO is responsible for directing staff and carrying out the will of the board. The staff is responsible for carrying out the business of the cooperative in close consultation with the CEO. The LPEA Bylaws and board policies outlining board and CEO duties and responsibilities can be viewed on our website. 

The LPEA Board of Directors is a governing board with two primary roles: to support the success of the cooperative and to protect public interest through examination and monitoring of cooperative information. The board has three essential duties: 

  1. Duty of Care – Exercise the same amount of care, caution, and common sense as any prudent person would in carrying out responsibilities to the organization. 
  2. Duty of Obedience – Comply with all federal, state, and local statutes and laws. Be faithful to the organization’s Mission, and abide by the bylaws, policies, rules, and regulations as adopted by the Board of Directors. 
  3. Duty of Loyalty – As a director of the cooperative, you have a fiduciary role. That means in any conflict, you must put the interests of the cooperative above your own interests. 

LPEA Directors are expected to attend regular board meetings which typically take place from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., on the third Wednesday of every month; as well as, Committee of the Whole meetings as set by the Board of Directors, from time to time, from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. on the Monday prior to the Wednesday board meeting. 

There are various board committees and other board commitments, such as Colorado Rural Electric Association meetings, etc. Directors may participate as a committee member or as a guest. 

A director can expect to spend an average of 7.25 hours per week preparing, studying, and serving on the board (based on 2017 IRS Form 990), and may attend up to 10 days of board- approved education and/or training per year. Director training and certification courses are available through the Colorado Rural Electrical Association and the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association. 

This summary of duties and responsibilities is neither exhaustive, nor representative of all circumstances under which the board performs its duties. Newly elected directors will receive an orientation with more details once they begin. 

Before considering a run for an LPEA board seat, please review board policies 102, 105, 107, 108, and 109, which can all be found here.  

Please take note of the following important election-related clauses: 

  • The LPEA board shall not take a position of support or opposition for any individual candidate for a board election. 
  • Individual directors are prohibited from using Cooperative resources to send communications regarding the election and may not use Cooperative resources to send individual newsletters. 
  • Resources of the Cooperative, including the Cooperative’s logo, trademarks, and graphic standards, shall not be used to support or oppose a candidate for election. For purposes of this paragraph, the term “resources” means any items owned or maintained by the Cooperative, such as Cooperative email addresses, electronic devices, printing, postage, mailing, employee time, or other monetary expenditures of the Cooperative. The term “resources” shall not include the membership list provided to bona fide candidates running for director. 
  • No candidate may solicit for nominating petition signatures on Cooperative property or use Cooperative resources in campaign efforts, other than obtaining a list of members from the Cooperative in accordance with applicable policy and state statute. 
  • The ballot position of a qualified Director candidate will be determined on a random basis prior to the publication of the ballot by the Election Supervisory Committee. 
  • The Cooperative shall report, at least weekly, the gross tally of returned envelopes on the Cooperative’s website. Said tally shall be the only information released regarding the number of envelopes. Prior to the conclusion of the election, no information shall be released regarding information on the number of ballots returned by district or the names of members who have or have not returned envelopes. 
  • No person shall be allowed to electioneer, photograph, videotape, or tape record any voting activity in the registration and voting area while an election is in progress. Such area shall include that portion of the interior of the building that is readily visible from where registration and voting is taking place. 
  • Posting of campaign literature on Cooperative property or at any special or regular meeting, including the annual meeting of the membership, is prohibited. 
  • Political campaigning, including campaigning for Cooperative issues, is not allowed on Cooperative property. This includes soliciting for signatures on petitions, soliciting for campaign funding, and campaigning for an individual or any other ballot issues. 
  • All candidates running for a position on LPEA’s board shall disclose all monetary and in-kind contributions received by the candidate or paid at the request or through coordination with the candidate, whose individual value is greater than $20. The candidate shall also include a brief description of all in-kind contributions received. The Cooperative shall send all candidates a one-week reminder email prior to the due date of any report and shall send the candidate an acknowledgement email when a report is received.  

2023 Board of Directors Election

In accordance with our bylaws, one-third of LPEA’s Board of Directors seats are up for election annually, one in each voting district. On June 8th, 2023, the results of the LPEA 2023 director election were announced at a our annual meeting. 

Final Vote Counts

Candidate Campaign Finance Reports (FINAL): 

On March 16, 2022 (and for the first time since 2004), the LPEA Board of Directors voted to cancel the 2022 LPEA director election in all four districts. For the news release on this announcement, click HERE.

Per LPEA Bylaws, one seat in each of LPEA's four districts comes up for election annually. If there is only one nominee for a position on the board for a district, the board may cancel the election for that district and, by resolution, declare the sole nominee elected to the board. 

As no challenger applications were received, Holly Metzler (District 1 – Archuleta County), Dan Huntington (District 2 – South & West La Plata County), Joe Lewandowski (District 3 – City of Durango), and John Witchel (District 4 – North & East La Plata County) are re-elected as a director of their respective districts as of May 12, 2022, for a three-year term. Click the links above to access the candidate's signature sheets as required to run for a director seat.

2021 Board of Directors Election

In accordance with our bylaws, one-third of LPEA’s Board of Directors seats are up for election annually, one in each voting district. On June 17th, 2021, the results of the LPEA 2021 director election were announced at a partial, virtual annual meeting. 

Final vote counts

Candidate Campaign Finance Reports (FINAL): 

2020 Board of Directors Election - District 4

On September 16th, 2020, John Witchel was elected to the director seat in District 4 in compliance with Art. III, Sec. 7 of the LPEA Bylaws and LPEA Board Policy 120. He will fill the position vacated by Director Jack D. Turner until the expiration of Director Turner’s original term, occurring at the Annual Member Meeting in 2022.

On May 16th, 2020, the results of the LPEA 2020 director election were announced at the partial, virtual annual meeting. The official election results announcement can be found HERE

Final 2020 director election ballot count 

Candidate Campaign Finance Reports: