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We have been told that the President of our Board has no vote. Says who?

We have been told that the President of our Board has no vote. Says who?

Some presidents refrain from voting so that they can stay “above the fray” and appear to conduct meetings evenhandedly. But there is no statute preventing them from voting and a bylaw provision limiting their vote would improperly and imprudently disenfranchise them. They should never be prevented from breaking a tie, or creating a tie so that a motion they oppose does not get enough votes to pass.

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What if the President of the Board is also the chairman of the meeting, can he/she still be allowed to vote on a motion?

This question is sounds like it's based on being given second-hand advice about Robert's Rules of Order which suggest that in large assemblies the chair should not, as a rule, vote. The rules (in Robert's) are different for small assemblies, like boards, and that provision does not usually apply.

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