Little League(r) consitutional crisis?

Being Jon Quixote, jouster of windmills (with apologies to Cervantes), I'd make a stink. Of course idealism is proportional to one's distance from the problem.

Tyrants rely on people not wanting to rock the boat. "For the children" is pure jingoistic propoganda. People who are truly in it "for the children" don't have the incessent need to remind everyone why they do what they do. Their actions are their shield. Tyrants use "for the children" like an Irish Catholic mother uses guilt (just ask mine!)

I've gained a lot of insight by dealing with Eastern Regional LL HQ, and the bottom line for them is, "if you don't follow your own rules, we won't stay by you if you are challenged."

If your league has people running for individual offices, you are already out of compliance. We used to do that too, until Regional told us otherwise. So we had to postpone our elections, ratify new articles to our Constitution, then hold the election. It was a pain, but we are fully in compliance, so nothing can be questioned.

The correct procedure (according to Eastern Region HQ) is to elect officers to the board "at large". For example, if you have 15 offices, you elect 15 people to the board. The newly-elected board then meets and fills the offices. (By the way, if you are in Eastern Region, the person to talk to is David James. He's aces. Tell him Jon Toner from Northampton says hello)

Before starting a shooting war, know your allies. If you are the only person who has issues with this, know that you a facing an uphill battle. One righteous man is a majority, but it certainly wouldn't hurt to have a righteous army with him.

If you've got some allies, I'd start by meeting and discussing it. You may find that people who are "behind you 100%" suddenly start to lose their nerve when what you propose changes from complaining to actual actions.

PREPARE FOR WHAT HAPPENS IF YOU WIN. If you win and force a new election, but there are no other candidates for the offices, you've accomplished nothing for your league and alienated people for no reason. Put together a slate of people who share your vision.

I'd also get a copy of the bylaws. Odds are good that there are other violations you don't know about. People who play fast and loose with rules tend not to be selective about it. This bolsters your case and can win more support, especially if you go to Regional HQ.

Next, keep it within the league as long as possible. You start getting others' into your fight and God only knows where it will lead. It will also give your league a big black-eye, which no one wants, and it allows the tyrants to paint YOU as the crank.

In addition, if you drag Regional HQ into this, you may be talking a very long time to resolve things.

If you can't force a re-election, or don't have the desire to start something this drawn out, I suggest a more subtle plan. If your bylaws are 18 years old, they are overdue for a rewrite. See if you can get a committee appointed and get on that committee. If they refuse, you could take this to Regional. They can't force the league to act (the Operating Manual only "recommends" updating the Constitution every 2 years, but at the very least, they'll want to see a copy. Odds are very good that what was once considered "acceptable" won't be now.

When I assumed the office of President in our league, the powers of the President were substancial. I rewrote the Constitution to dramatically weaken the office because it means a tyrant can be kept in check by a vigilant board.

I recommend it highly to all leagues. A good President will have the support from the board and can still accomplish great things. A poor President will be kept from screwing up too badly. A tyrant can be kept more-or-less in check.

Finally, Winston Churchill had it right when he said NEVER GIVE UP. If you start this, follow it through. It doesn't pay to tick someone off halfway. You drop the issue, guess who looks like he is admitting fault?

Best of luck.

PS) For what it is worth, I expect to have a copy of our Constitution on our website by the end of March.