About GUFF
What is GUFF? GUFF was created in 1979. Known as the Get Up-and-over Fan Fund or the Going Under Fan Fund, depending on which direction it's running, GUFF exists to provide funds to enable well-known fans from Australasia and Europe to visit each other's national (or other) conventions and to get to know each other's fandoms better. GUFF, like other fan funds, exists solely through the support of fandom. The candidates for each trip are voted on by interested fans, and each vote is accompanied by a monetary donation. These votes, and the continuing generosity of fandom through auctions and other donations, are what make GUFF possible.
Who may vote?
Voting in the race to send an Australasian fan to Loncon 3, the 73rd World Science Fiction Convention, is open to anyone who was active in fandom prior January 2012, and who contributes at least GBP5, EUR6, AUD10, NZD10 (or the equivalent in other currencies) to the fund. Larger contributions are encouraged and will be gratefully accepted. Only one vote per person is allowed. You must sign or otherwise verify your ballot, but your vote will not be made public.
Voting Details
GUFF uses a preferential ballot system which guarantees automatic runoffs until a majority is obtained. You rank the candidates in order of your preference for them. If the leading first-place candidate does not have a majority of votes after the first round of counting, the first-place votes for the lowest-placed candidate are discarded, and the second-place votes on those ballots are counted as first-place votes for the candidates concerned. This process is repeated until one candidate has a majority of all the votes cast. Votes for second and third place candidates are therefore important, but you may not rank any candidate in more than one position on your ballot.
Hold Over Funds. This choice, like ‘No award’ in award balloting, gives you the chance to vote for no GUFF trip in 2014 if for any reason the candidates do not appeal. Hold over funds may be voted for in any position on the ballot.
No Preference. This choice is for voters who do not wish the GUFF trip to be held over, but who either cannot or prefer not to decide between the candidates.
Donations
GUFF gratefully accepts your freely given money and material for auction. If you're not eligible to vote, or for some reason you don't wish to vote, why not donate anyway?
Candidiates
Each candidate has posted a bond of AUD 25; promised that barring force majeure they will travel to Loncon 3
(http://www.loncon3.org/) if elected, and provided nominations and a short platform displayed overleaf extolling their many interests and virtues.
How to cast your vote
Candidates for the Australasia to Europe race are: Alison Barton, Samara Morgan, Gillian Polack and Shay Telfer . You can vote via Paypal (list the candidates and preferences, plus other information requested on the ballot with your donation) or send your completed ballot form with cheque or money order or cash in person to:
Kylie Ding, 80A Forrest Street, FREMANTLE WA 6160, AUSTRALIA (cheques made out to ‘GUFF’ email kylie_ding[AT]hotmail.com – Paypal to the same address) or
Claire Brialey, 59 Shirley Road, Croydon, CR0 7ES (sterling cheques payable to GUFF) or to guffeurope[AT]gmail.com for Paypal payment.
The form for online voting can be found at www.rantalica.com.
Voting ends Monday 9th June 2014 23:59 GMT
About the candidates
Alison Barton
Involved in fandom since the early 90s, I’ve helped run several conventions (including Convergence 1 & 2, Continuum 1,2 & 3, and Conjecture). I chaired the Melbourne
Science Fiction Club for many years, running well over 100 events, movie nights and fundraisers, supporting them through thick and thin (and the packing of soooo many books!)
In 2003 I started the annual Melbourne Minicons with Austrek, Starwalking and the DWCV. I served on the first 3 Continuum Convention committees and the founding committee for Continuum Foundation.
Oh, and I’ve written a few articles and edited the occasional fanzine too.
Cheers
Alison
Alison’s nominators are Emma Hawkes, Damien Warman, Rose Mitchell, Ang Rosin and Johan Anglemark
Samara Morgan
My first con was Swancon 2008, and since then I've attended five Swancons and will be running my sixth! I've been active in Fandom since then and joined many committees. I'm on the WASFF Board since 3 years ago as well as being on 2 Waicon and 4 Genghiscon committees. I love organizing conventions and would love the chance to meet fans outside of Australia. I met such wonderful people at AussieCon 4 and had such an amazing time I'd love to go to another WorldCon. I've always dreamed of going to London and Loncon. Please help me get there!
Samara’s nominators are Brendan Ragan, Sarah Parker, Kitty Byrne, Lisa Konrad and Jocelyn Konrad-Lee
Gillian Polack
I love conventions and fandom and quiet chats in bars. I also love volunteering and panels and workshops. Mostly, I enjoy meeting new friends. I’ve been (quietly) a fan since joining MUSFA in 1979 and (more noisily) a Canberra fan since 2002. I’m the Australia/NZ correspondent for Europa SF. I was on the Conflux committee for seven years (but only designed five banquets) and am sometimes a writer, sometimes an editor, sometimes an academic, always a fan. Before and after LonCon, I’d love to meet fans in Europe. I especially want to attend Shamrokon and Finncon. I will have chocolate.
Gillian’s nominators are Ross Temple, Gene Melzack, Bruce Gillespie, Ben Roimola and Petra Bulic
Shay Telfer
was inducted into fandom by the likes of Doctor Who, Blakes 7, Diana Wynne Jones, John Wyndham, Douglas Adams and H.G. Wells, eventually joining the University of Western
Australia's Science Fiction Association, UniSFA, where he discovered he was not alone. From there he heard about Swancon which he's been attending ever since, and convened
in 2004 before taking some time to help raise another generation of SF fans. He has attended local and Worldcons in Australia, and would love to have the
opportunity to add some Australian flavour to Loncon 3 and Shamrokon as the GUFF delegate.
@AussieGUFF on Twitter.
Shay’s nominators are Fe Waters, Anna Hepworth, Mark Bivens, Doug Bell and Daniel Oi
About you
Please write your name and some contact details in case the administrators need to get in touch (email preferred)
___________________________________________________________________________________________
I am from: ____Australia ____UK ____Other (Please specify) ______________________________________
Enclosed is ____________ as a contribution to GUFF (minimum GBP5, EUR6, AUD10, NZD10)
Please indicate your voting preference by numbering the following:
_____ Barton
_____ Morgan
_____ Polack
_____ Telfer
_____ Hold over funds
_____ No preference
Please do not repeat any numbers; please use only the numbers 1 to 6; you do not need to number all options.
If you think your name may not be known to the administrators then, to ensure that your vote qualifies to be counted, please give in the space below the name and contact details of an active fan (not a fan group, a candidate or one of their nominators) to whom you are known and who is known to an administrator.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________