Feedback on election communications

PSF
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As some of you may know, the PSF is actually running two elections right now. One of them is the annual election of the Board of Directors; my ballot for that one arrived in my inbox this morning, and I voted this afternoon.

The other is for the new Python Packaging Council, and any Contributing, Supporting, or Fellow member of the PSF is eligible to be a voter (which I believe matches the criteria for the PSF Board Election). I was expecting to receive a ballot for that one too, but didn’t. And now that I have the time to look into it, it appears to be because, like the Board election, the Packaging Council election requires an affirmation in advance of intent to vote. But crucially that affirmation is completely separate from the one for the PSF Board election, and voting in last year’s PSF elections did not waive the requirement to affirm for the Packaging Council election (it does waive the requirement to affirm for the PSF Board election).

Which is mildly annoying, because I was looking forward to voting in the Packaging Council election. And if I’d understood in time that it required a separate manual affirmation, I would have done it.

The PSF Board election sends a yearly advance reminder email to potential voters (this year’s was sent on July 9) about the upcoming election and the requirements. The Packaging Council election appears not to have done so (or if it did, I can’t find the message; my profile on psfmember.org does say I’m opted-in to “Packaging Council Related Emails”). And the PSF Board reminder email said:

Per a recent PSF Bylaw change that allows for simplifying the voter affirmation process by treating past voting activity as intent to continue voting, if you voted last year, you will automatically be added to the 2026 voter roll.

I think a big part of my confusion is just that I assumed this meant all PSF elections, rather than only the Board election.

So a couple of pieces of feedback for future iterations:

  • Please consider sending an email to the PSF membership in advance of Packaging Council elections similar to the one already sent out about Board elections, or perhaps combine them into a single “upcoming elections” message if there’s a concern about too many messages.
  • Please make clear in that reminder that the Board and Packaging Council elections, though they share a pool of potential voters, do not share vote affirmations, so people will know that affirming for the Board election, or previously voting in a Board election, does not automatically enroll them for the Packaging Council elections.
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I have only received an email “Affirm your PSF Membership voting intention for 2026 PSF Board Election” as well. There was no separate email for the Packaging Council election. I didn’t give it much thought, because the 2026 Voting Affirmation covers both elections for me:

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I got this email on July 9th, perhaps this was only sent to ‘lapsed’ members and you were not one? (although I’m not sure I was actually a ‘lapsed’ member at the time either…):

Greetings,

You are receiving this email because you are a current or recently lapsed PSF Member.

The inaugural Python Packaging Council (PPC) is being established with broad authority over packaging specifications and the mandate to coordinate Python packaging efforts. The election of the PPC will be held in parallel to the PSF Board election.

PSF Contributing, Supporting, and Fellow Members are eligible to participate in this election. In order for you to vote in the inaugural PPC election, you need to be an active member and affirm your intention to vote by August 25th 2:00 PM UTC.

Please note: Your membership may be in a grace period or recently lapsed. We wanted to reach out to you just in case you’d like to join as a PSF Member again!

Election Overview
This election fills all five seats on the PPC. The two candidates receiving the highest number of votes shall be designated Cohort A with a two year term, and the three candidates receiving the next highest number of votes shall be designated Cohort B with a one year term.

In future elections, each cohort will be elected for a full two-year term in alternating years, so that roughly half of the Packaging Council turns over each cycle.

Election Schedule

  • Nominations open: Tuesday, July 28th, 2:00 pm UTC
  • Nomination cut-off: Tuesday, August 11th, 2:00 pm UTC
  • Announce candidates: Thursday, August 13th
  • Voter affirmation cut-off: Tuesday, August 25th, 2:00 pm UTC
  • Voting start date: Tuesday, September 1st, 2:00 pm UTC
  • Voting end date: Tuesday, September 15th, 2:00 pm UTC

Election Voting Affirmation
Check out the PSF membership page to learn more about membership classes and benefits. You can affirm your voting intention by following the steps in our video tutorial:

  • Log in to psfmember.org
  • Choose “Your Memberships” page at the top right to check your eligibility to vote (You must be a Contributing, Supporting, or Fellow member)
  • Choose “Voting Affirmation” page at the top right
  • Select your preferred intention for voting in 2026 (which now includes a second affirmation regarding your intention to vote in the PPC election)
  • Click the “Submit” button

Like the PSF Board elections, casting a vote in a PPC election will automatically affirm your intention to participate in the next PPC election.

If you have questions about membership, please email pc-elections@python.org.

Election Communications
Please review communication preferences on psfmember.org, if you would like to opt in or out of receiving emails about the PSF Board, PPC elections, or both. Here’s how:

  • Login to psfmember.org
  • Navigate to your “Profile” page
  • Click the “Name and Address” tab
  • Scroll down, designate your preferences
  • Click submit

Packaging Council Overview
The PPC will be the technical decision making body for the interoperability specifications affecting how Python packages are built, distributed, and installed.

The council will also serve as a coordinating body for the Python packaging ecosystem, working with many stakeholders from the wider Python community toward an ever-improving packaging user experience. This will include the maintainers of various packaging tools, the Python core team, the Python Steering Council, and the Python Software Foundation.

Running for the Packaging Council
Do you have a vision for improving the Python packaging experience? Do you make the tools used to build and consume Python packages? Are you passionate about building communities, consensus, and standards focused on the user experience? If these resonate with you, and you have the time to attend regular meetings and participate in the standardization process, you should consider running for the inaugural PPC!

As this is the inaugural PPC, the individuals serving on it will be establishing the initial operating procedures, scope, interests, and agenda that future councils will build upon. PEP 772 does provide non-binding operational suggestions, which hint at how the council could function.

We’re looking for candidates who can build bridges between projects and communities, who enjoy working with a very large community of passionate volunteers, and have a willingness to represent the wider community ahead of any single tool, project, or employer. We also welcome candidates who have a diverse set of skills and experiences, including open-governance experience, community stewardship, fundraising knowledge, and (of course!) technical expertise in Python packaging and distribution.

Please note: You must be a PSF Contributing, Supporting, or Fellow Member to nominate others or run for the PCC election.

What happens next?
You’ll get an email from OpaVote with a ballot on or right before September 1st, and then you can vote!

If you have questions about membership, nominations, or this year’s Board election, please email pc-elections@python.org or join the PSF Discord for the upcoming Board Office Hours on July 14th, 1 PM UTC.

Thank you,
Pradyun Gedam
PEP 772 Co-Author and Python Software Foundation Fellow

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Thanks for your feedback about election communications. We will incorporate this feedback into improvements for next year’s processes.

We sent two “2026 Python Packaging Council Inaugural Election Information & Schedule” emails to both members and currently lapsed members (July 9th and July 31st). Both emails excluded anyone with an account set to “No Bulk Emails (User Opt Out)”. The second mailing excluded those who already affirmed (which is likely why Dustin didn’t receive a second email).

Checking on James and Christian’s accounts, it looks like both are set to “No Bulk Emails (User Opt Out)”. The fact that you both received PSF Board election emails but not the PPC election emails is a complete mystery to me. Technically, you shouldn’t have received any emails based on that setting. I guess there is chance that you both opted into Board related emails which overrode the opt out? Unfortunately, my admin view doesn’t show that level of detail on the communications preferences, so I will need to check in with the administrators of psfmember.org to try to understand what happened.

Thanks again!

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My PSF profile settings are:

  • PSF email preference: Opted in (If you check this box, we will email with PSF related emails, including PSF Board elections.)
  • Packaging Council email preference: Opted in (If you check this box, we will email with Packaging Council related emails, including Packaging Council elections.)
  • All email preference: Opted out (If you check this box, we will not send you any bulk emails. You will still receive transactional emails such as receipts.)
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My psfmember.org profile says I’m opted in to “PSF Related Emails” and “Packaging Council Related Emails”, and opted out of “All Emails”. I don’t recall what I’ve done manually in there versus what’s a default setting, since I very rarely sign in to that site.

I also have no idea why that combination of settings would result in receiving the Board election email but not the packaging election email, but I’ve checked spam folders and deleted messages again and cannot find any reminders about the packaging election.