We’re excited to have a talented and energetic group of board members — new and returning — filling the 15 seats of your San Francisco Bicycle Coalition’s Board of Directors.
The staff is working with new board members to post updated bios as soon as possible at sfbike.org/board. Stay tuned! In the meantime, here is the complete list of board members:
- Brianne O’Leary Gagnon, President
- Lawrence Li, Treasurer
- Amandeep (‘Deep) Jawa, Secretary
- Rocky Beach
- Mary Kay Chin
- Vanessa Christie
- Lisa Fisher
- Jenn Fox
- Shirley Johnson
- Lainie Motamedi
- Leah Shahum
- Zack Stender
- Paul Supanawich
- Andy Thornley
- Andy Toebben
The board received a question concerning whether three of the board candidates (Mary Kay Chin, Lisa Fisher and Jenn Fox) were properly elected because, although they were among the top seven vote recipients, they did not receive more than 50 percent of the valid ballots cast in the 2015 board election. The bylaws are not entirely clear as to how such a case should be handled.
With the goal of ensuring that the SF Bicycle Coalition is at full strength, the board acted to seat the three board candidates in question. The board feels this approach honors the vote of the members, is in keeping with our normal approach of seating candidates with the most votes, and is legally sound. The board also indicated that, should any legal challenge arise to that seating, the board would fill any vacancies by appointment, with the exact same candidates, as intended by SF Bicycle Coalition members.
Additionally, the board discussed the suggestion that the processes used by SF Bicycle Coalition staff to tally and validate the votes cast be verified by an external party. As part of the election process, and as noted in the election report, staff researched external vendors who could perform such service, but could find no practical option. The board decided that the other alternative discussed — to have representatives from various campaigns review all ballots — would be an unacceptable invasion of member privacy, as it would require the reviewers to access each individual member’s voting records.
The members of the board are honored by the trust placed in them by you, the members of the SF Bicycle Coalition. We are excited to invest our networks, energy and resources in making San Francisco better place to bike and live for everyone.
