Utah to Bid for 2024 Westercon

A Salt Lake City-based group has announced a write-in bid to host the 2024 West Coast Science Fantasy Conference (Westercon 76). If selected, they plan to host Westercon 76 at the Doubletree by Hilton SLC Airport over the weekend of July 4-7, 2024. The election to choose the site of Westercon 76 will be held at Westercon 74 in Tonopah, Nevada over the weekend of July 1-4, 2022, with voting closing on July 2. There are no bids on the ballot, nor do there appear to be any other candidates vying to host Westercon 76.

The Utah in 2024 Westercon bid is led by Chair Charles R. Galway and Treasurer Cheryl A. Sneddon. Both have experience with the Salt Lake City-area convention CONduit and other volunteer events ranging from CONduit to Westercon and larger non-genre events. They are in the process of finalizing their bid filing with Westercon 74 in Tonopah, and they expect to file their bid before the close of voting at Westercon 74. Representatives of the bid will be at Westercon 74 in Tonopah to answer questions.

No bids filed by the deadline to appear on the ballot for the 2024 site selection election. Under Westercon rules, groups may file as write-in bids until the close of voting. Any site that files the necessary documents required by the Westercon Bylaws can be selected through the election process at Westercon. Should no validly-filed bid win the election, the Westercon Business Meeting can select a committee. If the Business Meeting is unable to select a committee, the selection of the site falls to the Board of Directors of the Los Angeles Science Fantasy Society, owners of the Westercon service mark.

The Site Selection election at Westercon 74 to select the site of the 2024 Westercon will be held on the first two days of Westercon 74 in Tonopah, Nevada. Westercon 74 will be held July 1-4, 2022 at the Tonopah Convention Center and area hotels. The Westercon 74 website is http://westercon74.org/. Voting to select the site of Westercon 74 will close at 7 PM Pacific Daylight Time on July 2, 2022. All supporting or attending members of Westercon 74 are eligible to vote, although due to the deadline for advance voting by mail, votes will need to be cast at Westercon 74.

Any member of Westercon 74 in Tonopah can vote in the election to choose the site of the 2024 Westercon upon payment of a $20 voting fee, which entitles the voter to at least a supporting membership in the 2024 Westercon. Information about the 2024 Site Selection election is available at the Westercon 74 website at http://westercon74.org/whats-on/business-meeting-site-selection/site-selection/. There is no electronic voting, and voting fees may not be paid by credit card. Members unable to attend Westercon 74 in person may arrange for other persons to deliver their ballots on their behalf to the Site Selection voting desk at Westercon 74 in Tonopah.

Anyone who joins Westercon 74 as a Supporting member by June 25, 2022 will also have access to the convention’s Virtual Program, http://westercon74.org/whats-on/programming/virtal-program/. To register as a member of Westercon 74, see the convention’s registration page at http://westercon74.org/membership/. Advance registration for Westercon 74 ends at the end of the day on June 25.

Westercon Site Selection is governed by the Westercon Bylaws, which are available online at http://www.westercon.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/WesterconBylaws-202111.pdf.

The results of 2024 Westercon Site Selection voting will be announced at the Westercon 74 Business Meeting on Sunday, July 3 at 11 AM PDT in the Tonopah Convention Center. Should no eligible bid win the election, the Westercon Business Meeting can select a committee under the provisions of the Westercon Bylaws.

Author: kevin.standlee

Kevin is an expert on the official rules of Westercon. He led the committee that redrafted the Westercon Bylaws in the 1990s and is effectively the primary author of the current Westercon Bylaws. Disclaimer: Kevin is Chair of Westercon 74 (Tonopah 2022).