Dear member clubs, delegates and participants of Master National,
During the winter board meeting, the topic of club engagement was discussed. During the discussion, club voting history was looked at. Some board members questioned the data presented knowing they had carried their club’s proxy to the 2025 meeting.
To ensure every vote was counted accurately, a committee was made up of Jeff Bundy, Charles Pugh, and Mike Woodbury. The committee was charged with the task of meticulously recounting and ratifying the vote. Not all ballots contained a vote for each initiative. After a thorough review, one by-law proposal previously announced as passed had, in fact, failed to meet the required threshold.
The committee reported the following results.
- The proposal to merge regions three and four did not receive the required two-thirds majority and therefore did not pass. Final vote: 73 in favor, 40 opposed.
- The proposal to allow pros to judge the event received the required two-thirds majority and passed. Final vote: 89 in favor, 24 opposed.
- The proposal prohibiting limits on qualifiers who can enter the national and requiring the MNRC to find suitable grounds that can handle all entries received the required two-thirds majority and passed. Final vote: 79 in favor, 35 opposed.
- Jeff Henderson won the vote as director for region one.
- Scott Corley won the vote as vice president of region four.
HOW DID THIS HAPPEN
We are not making excuses: the Master National Board as a whole failed in its handling of the vote tabulation this year. This was the largest voter turnout Master National has ever experienced, and we were not prepared to tabulate the volume of ballots.
Vote counting does not start until the annual meeting begins. There were nearly 500 ballot measures to be tabulated due to the high voter turnout. In an effort to have results ready to be announced at the end of the annual meeting, some votes were counted incorrectly; the count was rushed.
These mistakes were not intentional or malicious, but the result of trying to do too much, too quickly, with inadequate checks and balances. The board is truly sorry for the mistake and owns this.
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN
- Roseburg will remain the event site for 2026. There are no limits on the number of qualified dogs a handler can enter or handle.
- The MNRC structure remains unchanged, with four regions, each represented by a director and vice president. The annual event also remains unchanged and will continue to rotate among four regions.
- Professionals will be eligible to judge the event.
- The by-laws will be updated to reflect the two approved amendments.
MOVING FORWARD
This experience has made it clear that improvements are necessary. We are actively exploring the implementation of electronic ballot counting and other modern systems to improve accuracy, efficiency, and transparency.
Our not-for-profit organization needs to operate like a business. The board recognizes that we have been complacent for too long and have fallen behind the curve.
In summary, we identified an error, addressed it, and corrected the outcome. However, we also recognize that there is more work to be done to better serve our membership. We appreciate your patience and support as we take the necessary steps to strengthen our processes and move forward.
Sincerely,
2026 MNRC President