FACES AND PLACES: UNA conventions: a beginner's primer (02/17/02)

FACES AND PLACES

by Myron B. Kuropas

UNA conventions: a beginner's primer

First UNA delegate: "Is John running?"
Second delegate: "He says he's not."
Third delegate: "Doesn't mean a thing."
Which of them is a veteran delegate?

The 35th Convention of the Ukrainian National Association will be held in less than 100 days and already there are questions. Many questions. How does one become a delegate? Who is running for national office? How does one get elected? Can only delegates be elected to office?

First, a short review for the uninitiated. The Ukrainian National Association was founded in 1894 as a fraternal benefit society. Fraternal benefit societies are defined as non-profit corporations organized in a representative branch system for the sole benefit of its members. This often includes insurance benefits in accordance with specific state laws. Becoming a UNA member requires the purchase of a UNA insurance policy.

The UNA is not alone. There are many successful fraternal insurance societies in America today, including the Knights of Columbus, the Polish National Alliance, the Sons of Norway and the Lutheran Brotherhood.

According to the UNA Charter, the UNA's main purpose is "to promote unity and social relations, to diffuse principles of benevolence and charity among Ukrainians and their descendants residing in the United States ... within Canada and elsewhere, to secure their moral and mental development, to educate and instruct them in the principles of free government ... to organize and maintain schools, libraries, and other educational facilities, to provide for their entertainment and amusement, to publish and circulate among them literary and educational publications and newspapers in the English, Ukrainian and other languages, to provide and maintain an old-age home for its members ... and to provide recreational, sport, cultural and vacation facilities for its members ..."

Fraternal benefits such as Soyuzivka, The Ukrainian Weekly and Svoboda are subsidized by the UNA from surplus funds garnered from insurance premiums, loans and investments.

Thanks to a growing membership during a 75-year period, the UNA had been able to realize many of its professed objectives. As membership rolls dropped, however, surplus funds declined and certain fraternal benefits had to be scrapped, including the Svoboda Index, the Washington Office of the UNA, the children's magazine Veselka, insurance dividends and cultural courses at Soyuzivka. The UNA was also forced to sell its 15-story headquarters building in Jersey City, N.J.

Between 1894 and 1898, UNA conventions were called annually. From 1900 through 1914 delegates met every two years; between 1917 and 1925, there was a three-year interim between conventions; conventions have been quadrennial since 1929.

The Ukrainian National Association counted 439 members at its first convention in 1894. By 1974 the count was 89,117. Today the UNA membership hovers around 50,000.

Now for your questions. To become a delegate, one has to be of Ukrainian nationality, a member in good standing of the UNA for one year, and a dues-paying member of a branch for six months. Delegates and alternates are elected at a branch meeting no later than 60 days after the UNA Executive Committee issues a call for a regular convention. Branch representation varies from one delegate to four, depending on the size of the branch.

Does one have to be a delegate to run for national office? No. One need only be 18 years of age, be qualified for branch office and have manifested some activity on behalf of the UNA. Signing up new members is one such manifestation. No one has ever been elected who was not a convention attendee.

UNA national officers include the president, first and second vice-presidents, the director for Canada, national secretary, treasurer, five members of the Auditing Committee - one of whom must be a Canadian - and 14 advisors - two of whom must be Canadians.

Few delegates know who's running for office prior to the convention because it is now a UNA tradition not to announce one's candidacy in advance for two major reasons. The first is that candidates don't know how much real support they have until they arrive on the convention floor. As in all elections, incumbents have an advantage because they are visible. They sit on the convention dais and present reports of their activities. Being a paid UNA executive is even more advantageous because of the on-going relationship one has with branch secretaries, most of whom end up as delegates.

During most conventions little-known aspirants for national office achieve visibility by distributing literature announcing their candidacy and being involved in convention discussions. In the past, another way to gain exposure was by attending delegate caucuses and announcing one's candidacy. Almost all interest groups had nightly caucuses. At one time there was an American-born caucus, an Orthodox caucus, a Banderite caucus, a Melnykite caucus, a Plast caucus and various state caucuses. Since Pennsylvania had the most delegates, attending its caucus was a must for a candidate. Today UNA conventions require night sessions - a development that has all but eliminated time for caucuses.

A second reason for candidate reticence to announce early is the fear that in doing so one allows one's opposition to mobilize. Some people have even gone as far as to deny their candidacy until the last minute.

Once all the candidates have announced, various interest groups distribute "preferred" lists of candidates on the convention floor. The best lists offer a balanced ticket.

Next come the primaries. Since almost a fourth of the delegates run for some office, the primaries elminate those with little support. Delegates write their preferences on a sheet distributed by the election committee. The top three vote-getters who agree to run in the final election for each office are on the final ballot. Votes are then tabulated by machine.

Who makes it to the finals this year is important. The next UNA General Assembly will have to make many decisions regarding such fraternal benefits as Svoboda, The Ukrainian Weekly, Soyuzivka and student scholarships. Who is elected a delegate is even more consequential. The convention is the highest decision-making body in the UNA. Delegates in Chicago will have to decide not only who will serve on the national assembly, but also its size and its mandate. These are awesome responsibilities.

Myron Kuropas' e-mail address is: mbkuropas@compuserve.com.

| Home Page |