USA squad stands for the playing of ‘The Star-Spangled Banner’ © Peter Della Penna
USA Cricket’s inaugural elections have been pushed back for a second time as the new national governing body continues to sift through more challenges brought forward during a peer review process implemented with an aim to curb ineligible voting members. The announcement of the most recent postponement was made over USA Cricket’s social media platforms on Tuesday, with no definitive start date assigned.
The governing body had initially announced over the winter that they were targeting an April date for elections, but various delays resulted in the ICC’s caretaker Project USA administration deciding in April that the elections would have a starting date of May 18. However, USA project manager Eric Parthen told ESPNcricinfo last week that elections would be pushed back to May 29.
USA Cricket announced a list of approved candidates but concerns remain over the voting eligibility of various members. An example of this was the California Cricket Academy, initially declared one of 22 voting eligible leagues even though USA Cricket’s new governance states academies should not be considered leagues.
When asked about the election delays last week, Parthen had said that the four-person nominating and governance committee was taking a measured approach to evaluating any challenges to voting eligibility. However, voting registration would not be reopened beyond the April 24 deadline in spite of the delays to the election regardless of pleas from those who missed the deadline to register.
USA Cricket is under pressure to complete the election for the seven constituent board positions so that three independent directors can be appointed in time to settle a 10-person board to be presented to the ICC board of directors for approval on July 1 at the ICC Annual Conference in Dublin. USA Cricket is expected to formally be approved by the ICC board in Dublin as the governing body to take over from the expelled USACA as the Associate Member governing body representing the USA.
Separately, board candidate Masaood Yunus, former president of the Minnesota Cricket Association who had been announced to stand for Club Director, told ESPNcricinfo, over the weekend from the USA Cricket Combine in Chicago, that he intends to withdraw his candidacy and drop out of the elections. Yunus said he is doing so in order to throw his support behind John Aaron, the former USACA and ACF executive secretary who also serves as president of Atlantis Cricket Club in New York.
ESPNcricinfo sources have indicated that other candidates around the country are in the process of negotiating similar withdrawals to consolidate voting blocs and give their preferred candidates the best chance of success.
Peter Della Penna is ESPNcricinfo’s USA correspondent @PeterDellaPenna
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Source: ESPN Crickinfo