Greetings,

I am pleased to announce that nominations are now being accepted for the 2015 Wikimedia Foundation Elections. This year the Board and the FDC Staff are looking for a diverse set of candidates from regions and projects that are traditionally under-represented on the board and in the movement as well as candidates with experience in technology, product or finance. To this end they have published letters describing what they think is needed and, recognizing that those who know the community the best are the community themselves, the election committee is accepting nominations for community members you think should run and will reach out to those nominated to provide them with information about the job and the election process.

This year, elections are being held for the following roles:

Board of Trustees
The Board of Trustees is the decision-making body that is ultimately responsible for the long term sustainability of the Foundation, so we value wide input into its selection.  There are three positions being filled. More information about this role can be found at https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_elections_2015/Board_elections/2015.    

Funds Dissemination Committee (FDC)
The Funds Dissemination Committee (FDC) makes recommendations about how to allocate Wikimedia movement funds to eligible entities.  There are five positions being filled. More information about this role can be found at https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_elections_2015/FDC_elections/2015.

Funds Dissemination Committee (FDC) Ombud
The FDC Ombud receives complaints and feedback about the FDC process, investigates complaints at the request of the Board of Trustees,  and summarizes the investigations and feedback for the Board of Trustees on an annual basis.  One position is being filled.  More information about this role can be found at https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_elections_2015/FDC_Ombudsperson_elections/2015. 

The candidacy submission phase lasts from 00:00 UTC April 20 to 23:59 UTC May 5 for the Board and from 00:00 UTCApril 20 to 23:59 UTC April 30 for the FDC and FDC Ombudsperson. This year, we are accepting both self-nominations and nominations of others. More information on this election and the nomination process can be found at  https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_elections_2015.

Please feel free to post a note about the election on your project's village pump. Any questions related to the election can be posted on the talk page on Meta, or sent to the election committee's mailing list, board-elections@wikimedia.org 

On behalf of the Elections Committee,
-Gregory Varnum (User:Varnent)
Coordinator, 2015 Wikimedia Foundation Elections Committee