The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) has changed its election rules for the 2022 Presidential election, meaning those who joined the institute after April 23rd are not able to vote. The move, first reported by the Architects' Journal this week, has sparked outrage from a grassroots campaign to elect an architectural worker to the role, who describe the move as an exclusionary tactic.

In the previous RIBA Presidential election, held in 2020, the election rules stated that “the electorate shall comprise the current Members of the RIBA in all categories (save for Honorary Fellows).”

This therefore allowed RIBA chartered members (qualified architects), RIBA associate members (with a Masters qualification in the UK or EU), RIBA affiliate members (with an Undergraduate qualification in the UK), and RIBA student members (currently studying at university), to all cast a vote.

However, the rules for the 2022 election now contain an additional requirement, that “only individuals who have been admitted to RIBA membership at least ten days before the publication of the Notice of Election shall be eligible to vote.” The move has drawn fierce criticism from grassroots campaigners who are seeking to nominate and elect a “drama-free” early-career architectural worker for the role traditionally held by higher-level individuals much later in their careers.

The hustings for this grassroots campaign, which allowed would-be voters to meet the potential candidates, was held on April 21st, only two days before the new cut-off date for individuals to register with RIBA in order to cast their vote. On May 6th, it was announced that Muyiwa Oki would be put forward as the grassroots candidate.

Following Oki's selection, campaigners such as the Future Architects Front encouraged people to register with the RIBA before May 17th, which was believed to be the cut-off date for eligibility. Under the updated rules, the cut-off date for eligible voters to register with RIBA passed two weeks before Oki was even chosen as the grassroots candidate. Any attempt by Oki and his supporters to encourage those eligible to join the RIBA to cast their ballot, including students and early-career architects, was therefore destined to be futile for the 2022 race. 

The April 23rd date also passed 10 days before RIBA President Simon Alford published a May 3rd article in the RIBA Journal lamenting poor voter turnout and encouraging people to become involved in the election.

The Future Architects Front has reacted to the rule change by accusing RIBA of engaging in blatant voter suppression. “We’re calling on all members to join us in condemning these exclusionary tactics,” the group said in a statement. “The message from RIBA is clear: New members interested in creating a progressive future for the institute are not welcome, they are allowed no voice and no vote."

“Candidates like Muyiwa Oki will energize and motivate new members to join RIBA in the hope that the institute may one day represent their values,” the group continued. “This voter exclusion succeeds only in keeping RIBA unrepresentative and irrelevant. RIBA’s new election rules are undemocratic and designed to maintain the status quo of the institute. If this is not rectified by May 13th, we will be filing a complaint with the Charity Commission.”

UPDATE: 13th May:

In response to the story, RIBA sent Archinect the following statement:

“We are committed to reviewing and improving our election processes to involve and benefit from the skills and experiences of all members, across the globe."

"In 2020, we stopped the long-standing previous requirement which allowed only RIBA Chartered Members to vote in the Presidential elections, thereby enfranchising Student, Affiliate and Associate Members. In 2021 RIBA Council voted to change the RIBA Regulations so that International Members would become eligible to stand and vote for roles which were previously known as ‘national’ Council seats. This year we removed any requirement for Presidential candidates to have already been involved in RIBA governance before standing – thereby opening up the potential pool of those eligible to stand."

"The addition of a cut-off point for membership registration to the 2022 Election Rules has been under consideration since last year. It was approved by RIBA Council – our elected body of representatives – on 28 April 2022. A cut-off like this is standard practice in membership organisations like ours, some of which may require months before a member is able to vote in governance elections."

"We strongly encourage all members to engage with this year’s election: to nominate, vote or stand for one of the available seats and help to shape the RIBA’s future.”