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General Campaign Rules

Elections Rules Packet

A guide for candidates to read through so they understand qualifications, the campaign process and elections process.
See the guide here!

General Rules

Delegations may have only one delegate run for each position. This may mean your delegation will have to have a runoff election if there are two people interested in running for the same position.
No more than three delegates may run from a single delegation.

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Positions Overview

Youth Governor (1 elected)

Elected by the whole conference
Must be in 11th grade
Must have two years experience participating in the OHYG State Assembly. The year the candidate is running can count as the second year.
The Youth Governor will have many speaking roles at the conference and expectations outside of the conference. The Youth Governor is the face of the YMCA Ohio Youth & Government program.
They will attend the Youth Governor’s Conference held in DC on June 7th-11th, 2026 and be a part of the Youth Governors Association
They are expected to lead the Ohio delegation to the Conference on National Affairs June 23rd - July 3rd, 2026.
They will be invited to attend monthly virtual PO meetings the Delegation Leadership Retreat in August/September
The Youth Governor will lead a Governor’s Cabinet who will assist them in executing their duties at the conference. The Youth Governor may sign or veto any legislation passed by the Middle School, Scarlet or Gray Legislatures.
The Youth Governor will assist in selecting their cabinet and appoint a Chief of Staff.

Secretary of State (1 elected)

Elected by the whole conference
Must be in 11th grade
Must have two years experience participating in the OHYG State Assembly. The year the candidate is running can count as the second year.
The Secretary of State serves as the head of elections and the chief clerk at conferences. The Secretary of State will plan and lead the elections process for their conference.
The Secretary of State will serve as the head of the Secretary of State’s office.
They are expected to attend monthly virtual PO meetings the Delegation Leadership Retreat in August/September
The Secretary of State will assist in selecting their team.

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Positions Overview

Scarlet/Gray Legislature President of the Senate and Speaker of the House (4 elected, 2 speakers and 2 presidents)

Elected by delegates in the Scarlet or Gray Legislature
Must be in the 9th, 10th or 11th grade
Must have one year participating in the legislative program. The year the candidate is running can count as that year.
The Speaker of the House / President of the Senate will serve as the presiding officer for their respective chamber (House of Representatives - Speaker of the House, Senate - President of the Senate). This delegate will make all final determinations on questions regarding parliamentary procedure within their chamber.
They are expected to attend Monthly virtual PO meetings the Delegation Leadership Retreat in August/September
The Speaker of the House / President of the Senate will assist in selecting their committee chairs for their respective color.

Blue (Middle School) Legislature President of the Senate and Speaker of the House (2 elected, 1 speaker and 1 president)

Elected by delegates in the Middle School Legislature (Blue)
Must be in the 7th or 8th grade
Must have one year participating in the legislative program. The year the candidate is running can count as that year.
The Speaker of the House / President of the Senate will serve as the presiding officer for their respective chamber (House of Representatives - Speaker of the House, Senate - President of the Senate). This delegate will make all final determinations on questions regarding parliamentary procedure within their chamber.
The Speaker of the House / President of the Senate will assist in selecting their committee chairs for their respective color.

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Positions Overview

Head Lobbyist (1 elected)

Elected by the Lobbyist delegates
Must be in the 10th or 11th grade
Must have one year participating in the Lobbyist program. The year the candidate is running can count as that year.
The Head Lobbyist leads the Lobbyist program. The Head Lobbyist oversees the lobbyist teams and serves as a resource for lobbyists during the State Assembly.
They are expected to attend monthly virtual PO meetings the Delegation Leadership Retreat in August/September
The Head Lobbyist will assist in selecting the Lobbyists based on an application process.

Media Editor in Chief (1 elected)

Elected by the Media delegates
Must be in the 10th or 11th grade
Must have one year participating in the Media program. The year the candidate is running can count as that year.
The Media Editor in Chief is in charge of the Media Team and leads the development of any media throughout the conference in addition to assisting with social media throughout the program year.
They are expected to attend monthly virtual PO meetings the Delegation Leadership Retreat in August/September
The Media Editor in Chief will assist in selecting members of their team and has the ability to appoint a Copy and Video Editor.

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Positions Overview

Supreme Court Chief Justice (1 elected)

Elected by the Supreme Court delegates
Must be in the 10th or 11th grade
Must have one year participating in the Supreme Court program. The year the candidate is running can count as that year.
The Supreme Court Chief Justice will preside over the Supreme Court Program and will lead their fellow presiding justices alongside the Attorney General.
The Supreme Court Chief Justice will be invited to lead the Ohio delegation to the National Judicial Competition in July.
They are expected to attend monthly virtual PO meetings the Delegation Leadership Retreat in August/September
The Supreme Court Chief Justice will assist in selecting presiding justices for their program area.

Supreme Court Attorney General (1 elected)

Elected by the Supreme Court delegates
Must be in the 10th or 11th grade
Must have one year participating in the Supreme Court program. The year the candidate is running can count as that year.
The Supreme Court Attorney General will preside over the Supreme Court Program and will lead their fellow presiding justices alongside the Supreme Court Chief Justice.
The Attorney General will be invited to lead the Ohio delegation to the National Judicial Competition in July.
They are expected to attend monthly virtual PO meetings the Delegation Leadership Retreat in August/September
The Attorney General will assist in selecting presiding justices for their program area.

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Positions Overview

Appellate Court Chief Justice (1 elected)

Elected by the Appellate Court delegates
Must be in the 10th or 11th grade
Must have one year participating in the Appellate Court program. The year the candidate is running can count as that year.
The Appellate Court Chief Justice will preside over the Appellate Court Program and will lead their fellow presiding justices.
The Appellate Court Chief Justice will be invited to lead the Ohio delegation to the National Judicial Competition in July.
The Appellate Court Chief Justice will assist in selecting presiding justices for their program area.

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Declaring Candidacy

Candidate Declaration Form:

A Google form that opens January 16th and closes February 12th at 7:00pm (dinner during the first day of State Assembly).
It can be found on the OHYG website under State Assembly Information.

Nominating Petitions

These petitions will require ten signatures from fellow delegates.

No more than two signatures can come from one delegation, including the candidate's own.
Delegates are only allowed to sign one petition per office, so it would be good to get a few extra signatures just in case you have a few that are invalid.

They can be picked up from the registration table, the OHYG Office or from the Secretaries of State on the first day of the State Assembly (February 12th).
They are due by 7:00 pm on February 12th to the OHYG office or the Secretaries of State.

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Preparing for the Campaign

Preparations

Create and practice your speech
Practice for Town Hall
Create campaign materials

Speeches & Town Hall

Youth Governor and Secretary of State Candidates will take part in Speeches & Town Hall on Thursday evening.

Candidates may appoint an intro speaker to give an up to 1 minute introductory speech.
Candidates will then have up to 5 minutes for their campaign speech.
The Secretary of State will then ask the Media Editor in Chief to ask the candidate three questions.

All other candidates will take part in Speeches & Town Hall on Friday morning in front of their respective program areas.

Candidates will have up to 3 minutes to give their campaign speech. No introductory speakers will be allowed.
The Secretary of State will then ask a designated member of the Media to ask the candidate three questions.

General Guidelines

Candidates should be outside the room where the speeches are being held unless they are the current candidate speaking.
Each speech session will run by position and then by alphabetical order.

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Preparing for the Campaign

Campaign Materials

Candidates are encouraged to bring campaign materials to distribute.
These could include: buttons, small flyers, a tri-fold board

Note: stickers and any candy/food with nuts in them are banned from being used as campaign materials.
Consider adding to your tri-fold board: Fun facts, Why you’re qualified for the job and What you plan to do with the job

Youth Governor and Secretary of State Candidates may spend up to $150.00 on campaign materials.
All other offices may spend up to $100 on campaign materials.
Campaign expenditure limits include in-kind donations (Instead of cash, donors provide physical items like office supplies or food, or professional services like marketing).

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Preparing for the Campaign

Campaigning

Talk to a lot of people from different delegations!

Students should campaign throughout the conference until voting closes. They should try to get to know various students and be prepared to answer individual questions.

Campaign Slogan

Alliteration - choose a slogan that has the same letter sounds as your name. (Ex: Cole Cares! Vote for Vicky! Ben for President of the Senate! Olive is the One!)
Keep it short and simple. You want it easy to remember!
Make it meaningful. It should speak to your values or the values of the voters. (Ex: Elect Peter, Fair to All. Vote Rose for Respect and Responsibility)
Use your slogan a lot. It should be on your campaign poster, flyers and even in your speeches!

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Elections & Results

Elections

Polls will open precisely at 10:00 am on the Friday of the YMCA Ohio Youth & Government State Assembly. Polls will close at 6:00 pm on the same Friday
Candidates may not campaign within 25 feet of any polling precinct. This includes campaign materials worn or present within the polling precinct. Any voter wearing campaign materials will be asked to remove them before they enter the precinct.
YMCA Ohio Youth & Government elections are run via Google Forms and are conducted using Ranked Choice Voting. Voters can rank their candidates from 1st choice down.
If no candidate has a majority of votes on the first round, the candidate with the least amount of 1st place votes will be dropped. That candidate’s votes will be allocated to their second-place position.
This process of dropping the candidate with the least amount of votes will continue until a candidate has a majority of votes.

So it would be a good idea to encourage voters who have someone else as their #1 pick to rank you second!

In the case of a tie for the winner of an election, there will be a special election at the Closing General Assembly. Only those able to vote in that election will be able to vote and it will be done by a standing vote.

Results

The results of the election will be announced by the Secretary of State at the Closing General Assembly of the YMCA Ohio Youth & Government State Assembly on Saturday morning.
After results have been announced, placement will be released to candidates that request that information, but vote totals will not be released.
On the Friday following the conference, the newly elected officers will receive an email with a contract to sign. These officers will have one week (until the following Friday) to accept their position by signing the contract. If an officer doesn’t sign the contract by the deadline, they will be considered as having withdrawn, and the next highest vote-getter for that position will be elevated.

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Challenges

Any delegate attending the YMCA Ohio Youth & Government State Assembly can submit a Campaign Challenge.
These challenges are to be submitted following the procedure set out by the Secretary of State.
Challenges MUST be received before the Polls open on Friday morning. Any challenges will be reviewed by the Secretary of State’s Office.
Challenges could include:

Breaking any of the election rules listed within this packet.
Exceeding the campaign expenditure limit.
Violating anything in the YMCA Ohio Youth & Government Code of Conduct.

If the challenge is validated by the Secretary of State’s Office, candidates can face:

Public Apology to the Conference
Removal from ballot/office

If a major challenge arises after the Secretary of State has met and certified the ballot but before the results are announced, the Secretary of State is open to calling an emergency meeting to hear that challenge.

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If Not Elected

Don’t take it too hard! As long as you followed the core values, you should be proud of yourself.
Remember, you can still be a leader in your committee and chamber by stepping up in debate, helping others, volunteering if a clerk/vice-chair is needed, etc.
You can always run next time! (Or come back to help mentor as a volunteer if you’re a senior)

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Timeline Recap

January 16th @ 9:00 am - Candidate Declaration Form opens for the 2026 State Assembly.
February 12th @7:00 pm - Candidate Declaration Form closes and all nominating petitions are due at this time.
February 12th @8:45 pm - Youth Governor and Secretary of State Speeches & Town Hall
February 13th @8:00 am - Program Area Candidate Speeches & Town Hall
February 13th - Polls Open - 10:00 am - 6:00 pm
February 14th - Election Results Announced at Closing Ceremony
February 20th - Contracts sent for 2026 - 2027 Early Conference Elected Presiding Officers
February 27th @ 5:00 pm - Signed Contracts must be received by 2026 - 2027 Early Conference Elected Presiding Officers
April 15th @5:30pm - All outgoing (2026) and incoming (2027) Presiding Officers will attend a virtual meeting on Zoom.

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