The State Employees Credit Union board’s nominating committee recommended four incumbent directors be re-elected, the Raleigh-based institution told members Thursday. It is likely they will face opposition from three former SECU officials and the wife of ex-CEO Jim Blaine.
The committee recommended these four candidates:
— McKinley Wooten, an assistant secretary of the N.C. Department of Revenue, who has been a director since 2000.
— Bob Brinson, a retired state information technology employee and a director since 2007.
— Mark Fleming, a retired former vice president of government relations at Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina. He’s been a director since 2019.
— Stelfanie Williams, a Duke University administrator who has been a director since 2017.
The four were chosen from 11 candidates who submitted applications to the nominating committee, which was chaired by retired state employee Chuck Stone. He was among the three new directors elected last year, ousting three incumbent members who had been recommended by a similar nominating committee.
The trio of new directors had expressed dissatisfaction with some decisions approved by the 11-member board at SECU. It is the second-largest U.S. credit union with about $50 billion in assets, and it has 2.8 million members and offices in every N.C. county.
Candidates who weren’t selected by the nominating committee can file a petition and fulfill requirements if they want to appear on the ballot, challenging the recommended directors.
On Sunday, former SECU CEO Blaine said four of the seven board nominees not selected by the committee will start efforts today to be on the ballot. Susie Ford of Cary, Julian Hawes of Goldsboro and Kirby Parrish of Clayton are former senior vice presidents at SECU. The other likely candidate will be Blaine’s wife, Jean, who spoke at last year’s annual meeting in favor of the three winning board members.
Blaine, former CEO Mike Word and former board member Shirley Bell selected the four. “Last year’s nominees featured long-term, dedicated volunteers; this year the candidates are heavily weighted toward hands-on, in-the-trenches experience and knowledge of the operations and philosophy of SECU,” Blaine said in an email.
While working for SECU, Parrish focused on investments, Hawes was a key lending executive, and Ford showed marketing and operations expertise, Blaine says. As for Jean Blaine, she’s been among the most passionate critics of policy changes at the credit union, he says.
Absentee voting runs from Sept. 3 to Oct. 1, with the election concluding at SECU’s annual meeting in Greensboro on Oct. 8
The credit union is offering digital voting for the first time, which officials say will encourage more of its 2.8 million members to vote. Board members receive no compensation, according to state credit-union industry rules.
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