Lorenzo, You noted "In this case, we have discussed the reasons with the candidates, but it's not appropriate for us *or them *[emphasis mine] to bring them here."
Are you suggesting that the Board's official position is that even the candidates themselves are not allowed to disclose any rationale for disqualification that has been provided to them? If so, where in the candidate guidelines on Meta [1] (or linked policies like Universal Code of Conduct and Friendly Space) do you think this is clearly outlined? Are candidates now or in the future required to sign confidentiality agreements? Please clarify, since I think the potential implications for election transparency are quite serious. Regards, Steven Walling 1. https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_elections/2025/Candidate_guidelines On Wed, Oct 15, 2025 at 2:28 PM Lorenzo <[email protected]> wrote: > Hi everyone, I'm writing on behalf of the Board of Trustees. > > Since the announcement > <https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_Board_noticeboard/October_2025_update> > of > the final ballot and further > <https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Talk:Wikimedia_Foundation_Board_noticeboard/October_2025_update#More_answers_on_the_Board's_decision_on_the_2025_final_ballot> > messages > <https://lists.wikimedia.org/hyperkitty/list/[email protected]/message/OKNCCC4USJ2YGU3H4OXI3OYEIUUGDMLV/>, > we have been closely following conversations over the past week. We agree > with the sentiments that we do not have an ideal process for board > selection, and as such, we are continuously reviewing it and attempting > improvements. This ranges from the role of various stakeholders in the > short-listing process, the timeline of the selection, to the steps required > by the Board's own bylaws, and to the most effective way of communicating > decisions to our movement. > > The change we implemented this year - vetting candidates before the vote, > instead of after - was made in order to ensure that we don't ask the > community to vote for people that we will not be able to seat. This might > not have been the best choice, and we will rediscuss it for future > selections. The checks themselves, however, haven't changed: they are the > same I went through four years ago when I joined the board, including the > background check, media check and the vetting interview. > > We understand that some of you disagree with the decision we have taken > regarding individual candidates. Unfortunately, it is not something we are > able to provide more information about. Part of our duty is to protect the > users and the projects, and sometimes that means not sharing publicly > information that may harm them or the movement, even when the community > demands it, or some of the people affected demand it. In this case, we have > discussed the reasons with the candidates, but it's not appropriate for us > or them to bring them here. > I realize this is frustrating - it is also for us. Even before the > announcement, we knew that this decision would receive harsh criticism, and > we knew that we could not fully respond to it. > > The Board's Governance Committee > <https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_Governance_Committee> > (which > is tasked with overseeing the selection process) welcomes specific > proposals and ideas for reform here on this talk page > <https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Talk:Wikimedia_Foundation_Board_noticeboard/October_2025_update>. > We have time before the next selection cycle (scheduled for 2027) to make > both incremental improvements and large-scale changes. The Governance > Committee and the Board will carefully consider them. We commit to work on > improvements of the selection process, and working with the communities and > the affiliates, to make this process better for all stakeholders, including > for the Board itself. > > Lorenzo Losa > Chair-Elect, Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees > > _______________________________________________ > Wikimedia-l mailing list -- [email protected], guidelines > at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l > Public archives at > https://lists.wikimedia.org/hyperkitty/list/[email protected]/message/JNCRLJEKFSRKCIMXHUIGJVTNOWTQNDN5/ > To unsubscribe send an email to [email protected] >
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