Less Than 300 Members Vote In SFWA Presidential Election In Disaster For The Sci-Fi And Fantasy Author's Club

No one wants to participate in SFWA anymore, even in a matter as small as voting for a president. Science fiction and fantasy authors have rejected the social club for what it is.

SFWA has been in massive decline, with many science fiction and fantasy authors canceling their memberships in recent months. After several scandals rocked the club, less than 300 people voted in the SFWA presidential election. 

During the summer, the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association experienced tumultuous times. President Jeffe Kennedy suddenly resigned after posting a vague letter about the reasoning, leading to speculation among the club members that troubles were brewing. 

As more information came out, it became clear that SFWA had a myriad of problems. The social club masquerading as a professional authors’ union funneled money into an anthology for the Ukraine, and then demanded the editors of the anthology return the money. Several volunteers quit, citing bad conditions and poor treatment from the board. Other board members resigned in addition to Jeffe Kennedy.

Another rumor over the last few years was that SFWA misappropriated funds by funneling over a hundred thousand dollars into Twitter troll Patrick S. Tomlinson’s legal battle against an online forum for a frivolous lawsuit that he eventually lost.

The situation came to a head when a whistle-blower came to Fandom Pulse to provide access to the SFWA forums and provide a post where a member detailed a scandal with a disabled employee who requested accessibility and was completely ignored by the board. It appeared as if the current board may have vacated to avoid a potential lawsuit.

When the dust settled, Chelsea Mueller was named interim SFWA president, who swiftly resigned the position herself, leading to the current special election for both President and Secretary as those positions had been vacated.

The election only exposed how few people are invested in the club’s affairs at this juncture as most serious science fiction and fantasy professionals avoid SFWA altogether. 

The results were:

President:

Kate Ristau (126 votes)

Christine Taylor-Butler (93 votes)

Jennifer Brozek (62 votes)

Secretary: 

Steven D. Brewer (85 votes)

Matthew Reardon (5 votes)

Kate Ristau (4 votes)

Christine Taylor-Butler (3 votes)

Curtis C. Chen (3 votes)

Jennifer Brozek (3 votes)

Less than three hundred members bothered to vote for the president of the club and approximately one hundred wrote in a candidate for secretary as the one candidate who was on the ballot withdrew, not wanting to do work for the club in this environment. 

It’s another disastrous sign for SFWA as so few people are engaged at this juncture that they even care about the club’s leadership. 

SFWA posted on the matter:

The newly elected officers and directors-at-large will serve on the SFWA Board from November 1st, 2024 through June 30th, 2025. Should they like to continue in their offices, they will need to run for office in the next regular election cycle.

The SFWA Board of Directors through June 30th 2025 are:

Kate Ristau, President

Anthony W. Eichenlaub, Vice President

Jonathan Brazee, CFO

Steven D. Brewer, Secretary

Christine Taylor-Butler, Director-at-Large

Phoebe Barton, Director-at-Large

Noah K. Sturdevant, Director-at-Large

Alton Kremer, Director-at-Large

The SFWA Board and staff would like to thank the candidates who volunteered their time and expertise to run for office and those who continue to serve the organization in various ways. Most of our programs, services, committees, and the Board of Directors are run by volunteers.

Notably, Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki is no longer a Director-At-Large as he was removed from the board position over his scandal for stealing a white woman’s short story this week.

The club made its X account protected in the wake of all their scandals.

With corruption, disability issues, and identity politics miring what was once a useful club for authors, the lack of enthusiasm for even a vote shows that most authors have no confidence in SFWA. The club has been decimated, and many authors have voiced that they are no longer renewing their memberships this year. Without a clear vision for actually helping authors sell books, it seems SFWA is destined to become history.

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