I and the other candidate for Vice President present were asked this question during the platform speeches at Coaster Con. My view is that the Vice Presidency is a separately elected position for a reason. Moreover, I have fought (and plan to continue to fight, if need be) to keep it that way. The notion that the person serving as Vice President should just automatically be assumed to be the next ACE President (or frontrunner for that job) in two to four years doesn't gel well with me. I would dare say that that point of view sends mixed messages...that is to say that often, a lot of the people bemoaning the fact that members don't want to run for positions in ACE are the same ones saying that there should be a smooth transition of power that automatically (or nearly automatically) elevates the Vice President to the Presidency at the end of the President's term limit. All this succeeds in doing is creating one more office that people don't want to run for as they may feel obligated to serve for the next 12 years as Vice President, President, and Immediate Past President. Some people can excel in a Vice Presidential capacity and proceed to become a less than ideal President (and the reverse is true, also). I don't think such people should be pressured into running for and accepting the Presidency, only to be left feeling like they're letting the members and themselves down with the job they're doing, especially when someone who could do a better job but doesn't happen to be the most recent Vice President is available for the task. I am sure that being a member of ACE's Executive Committee is a lot of hard work, but it shouldn't be so much work that the average ACE member can't handle it. If it is, there's something wrong.
Indeed, any good democracy can handle a smooth transition of power to someone who was not involved with the previous administration of the applicable government. Is ACE's democracy so broken that the club would just fall to pieces if a qualified candidate who had not served as Vice President or in another recent Executive Committee capacity ran and won the Presidency of the club? I sure hope not. If it is, ACE has much bigger problems than the possibility of electing an official who wants to serve for less than four (or eight or 12) years!
As for the future in regard to my plans, I find it a bit presumptuous to make solid long-term plans. The past and the future are out of our control. All we can control is what happens right now. In the now, I want to be your Vice President in an effort to enact the changes to ACE's Constitution and Bylaws as outlined in my platform. Will I be ready and inclined to run for President in four years? I do not know. If elected, will I be inclined to seek a second term as Vice President? Again, I don't know. I am a full time grad school student with a desire to use my talents and education to heal the world. If the work load proves too cumbersome or the other Executive Committee members prove too obstructionist to my agenda for me to be able to accomplish the things I want to accomplish for the benefit of all ACE members, I may well choose to bow out in 2016. In such an event I would wait until I'm out of school, my practice is up and running, and the political climate in ACE is more favorable to my goals before I would try to come back and finish what I'm attempting to start. I cannot promise anyone ambition to serve beyond 2016. I can promise that so long as I remain passionate about this hobby, ACE, and the rights of ACE's membership, I will not be silent on those matters that I consider important to our future.
In the event that I am elected and something unforeseen happens to (presumed) President-Elect Willard, I would be seeking help from ACE's membership, the other members of ACE's Executive Committee, and any past ACE Presidents willing to assist in guiding me through my duties until such time as the President can resume his duties or a new President can be elected. I may be stubbornly passionate about many issues but at the same time, until I've made a firm decision on a matter, I prefer to lead by consensus. That would be my most likely approach if ACE Presidential duties were thrust upon me in an unforeseen fashion.
