LOS ANGELES – The Writers Guild of America, West’s nominating committees have announced the initial list of candidates for the 2011 WGAW Officers and Board of Directors election.

The officer candidates are as follows: President – Patric M. Verrone, Christopher Keyser; Vice President – Howard A. Rodman, John Aboud; Secretary-Treasurer – David N. Weiss (inc.), Carl Gottlieb.

There are 17 candidates nominated to run for eight open seats on the WGAW’s Board of Directors as follows: Anthony Sparks, Dan Wilcox (inc.), Michael Oates Palmer, Thania St. John, Ari B. Rubin, Nelson Soler, Billy Ray (inc.), Linda Burstyn (inc.), Mark Alton Brown, David S. Goyer, Barbara E. Nance, Alfredo Barrios, Jr., John Brancato, Ian Deitchman (inc.), Nell Scovell, Jay Kogen, Carleton Eastlake (inc.).

Note to editors: WGAW internal rules require candidates to be announced in an order determined by lot; (inc.) denotes an incumbent candidate.

In addition to the candidates selected by the nominating committees, eligible members may also be nominated by petition. Members seeking nomination for the office of President, Vice President, or Secretary-Treasurer must obtain 50 member signatures in support of their petitions. Members seeking nomination for the Board of Directors must obtain 25 member signatures in support of their petitions. The deadline for submitting signed petitions to the WGAW is 12:00 p.m. (PDT) on Friday, July 22. Members may submit online nomination petitions by visiting the members-only section of the WGAW’s website at: www.wga.org.

The WGAW will host its annual Candidates Night town-hall forum, at which Guild members may meet and pose questions to their Officer and BOD candidates, on Wednesday, August 31, at WGAW headquarters in Los Angeles.

Guild members will receive candidate, non-candidate, and rebuttal statements, if any, with their ballots prior to the election. Candidates may mail additional campaign materials at their own expense. Members may vote by mail or in person at the WGAW’s annual membership meeting on Thursday, September 15. Ballots will be counted on Friday, September 16.

The Writers Guild of America, West (WGAW) is a labor union representing writers of motion pictures, television, radio, and Internet programming, including news and documentaries. Founded in 1933, the Guild negotiates and administers contracts that protect the creative and economic rights of its members. It is involved in a wide range of programs that advance the interests of writers, and is active in public policy and legislative matters on the local, national, and international levels. For more information on the WGAW, please visit: www.wga.org.

Editor-in-Chief Nikki Finke - tip her here.