USCF election unofficial and partial results

1. Polgar 1386
2 . Bauer 1087
3. Truong 949
4. Berry 915

5. Korenman 757
6. Jones 733
7. Schultz 711

8. Lux 465
9. Sloan 263
10. Goodall 190

The top 3 will have a 4 year term and the 4th finisher will have a 2 year term.

The number of ballots received as of 9AM this morning was 4513, but that does not yet include Wednesday’s mail.

States counted so far:

Region 1: Maine Region 2: none Region 3: Maryland, Virginia, Delaware, DC, W Virginia Region 4: Florida, N Carolina, S Carolina Region 5: Michigan, Indiana, Ohio Region 6: S Dakota Region 7: Missouri, Nebraska Region 8: Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana Region 9: Utah Region 10: Oklahoma, Texas, N Mexico Region 11: Nevada, Hawaii Region 12: Idaho, Washington, Oregon, Alaska.

States not yet counted: NH, VT, CT, RI, MA, NY, NJ, PA, GA, ND, SD, WI, MN, IL, IA, WY, CO, KS, AZ, CA

As I said many times before, we have 7 qualified candidates in this election. Anyone in the current top 7 can help the USCF and I would be happy and proud to work with them. However, a lot of positive changes have to be made in order for the USCF to survive and prosper.

Some of these areas are:

1. Building a strong membership base via grassroots marketing, promotion and strong structural support for the local clubs, affiliates, organizers, volunteers and supporters. We need to develop a high level of mutual respect and cooperation among these groups.

2. Building a strong membership recruitment plan with excellent incentives for organizations to partner with us. There are more active players who are not members of the USCF than there are USCF members. Many of these players do not see the benefits for joining the USCF. This has to change. We must get our message out much better. We must also work with our partners to offer our members and potential members more value and greater benefit for their money.

3. Building a strong support system for scholastic, college, adult, tournament, correspondence, Internet and professional players. As we have seen over the years, adult and college chess suffers from the lack of a cohesive plan to retain scholastic players. We must also recognize that there are many more Internet players than ever before, but we cannot ignore our correspondence or professional players. It is vital to the health of this federation that we have communication and joint effort between all of these membership groups.

4. Building a strong and respectable image and reputation for the USCF. Without this, we cannot get support from the private sector or local, state, or federal government. Any of these agencies and organizations can do a background check on the USCF and this is the chief reason why we keep losing one sponsor after another. We cannot have incompetent and unprofessional people leading this federation. We need to bring in people with proper experience, expertise, energy and passion for chess along with strong records of success.

5. Building a strong, sensible and cost sensitive marketing, promotion and PR project. It does not have to cost tens of thousands of dollars to be effective. I have proven that with the Susan Polgar Foundation. It can be done if we know how. Too many people are bickering about dollars and cents while throwing away opportunities to increase revenues through sponsorships, grants and other avenues.

6. Building a sound and fiscally responsible budget with minimal waste. The savings from the inefficiency alone can fund many additional projects to help the USCF. We must build the USCF into a viable organization. This federation is not running at an optimal level right now.

7. Building a strong relationship and partnership with countless other chess organizations nationwide and worldwide. We need to unite to win. Constant political wars and infighting will only harm chess and the USCF. As a leading federation in the world of chess, we should lead by example and work with everyone to better our sport.

8. Building a strong relationship and partnership with countless volunteers and supporters to help improve many current weaknesses of this federation. There are plenty of people who are willing, ready and able to help, but they are not being utilized properly because of chess politics.

9. Building a strong relationship and partnership with kindergarten, elementary, middle and high schools, as well as colleges and universities across the country to promote chess and education. We also have to work with parents of home-schooled students, in addition to organizations that represent them.

10. Building a strong relationship and partnership with countless companies around the world to promote chess and all its benefits. They want to promote their companies, products or services and we want their sponsorship. It is a win-win situation for both sides.

11. Building a strong communication channel with all members, volunteers, supporters and sponsors, etc. We need to get our strong and positive message out to the people.

12. Building a strong business vision and plan. We need to run this federation like any successful and reputable company. All business decisions must make sense financially or help this federation in one way or another. We cannot make business decisions as a way to reward our political supporters.

We cannot continue to function as an unprofessional organization which chases away sponsors, supporters, volunteers and members year after year due to incompetence and destructive politics. Please continue to support the USCF. This is just the first step. Together, we will raise this sinking ship. I am looking forward to many exciting years ahead of us.

Thank you for your support!
Susan Polgar