# 4. Election Procedures

The Council responsible for security has 12 members who are split into two groups, one with 6 members in September and one with 6 members in March. Elections are held annually for each cohort on September 15 and March 15 at 12:00 UTC, respectively. The September Cohort serves a term of 6 months, while the March Cohort serves for 1 year. The initial cohorts were randomly selected from the 12 members and listed in Suihubs-1.

During the election, which begins at time T, DAO members can declare their candidacy for the Security Council within seven days of T. If there are more than six candidates, each candidate must have support from pledged votes representing at least 0.2% of all Votable Tokens. If there are fewer than six candidates, current Security Council members from the cohort up for election may become candidates. From T+7 to T+28 days, DAO members or delegates can vote for any declared candidate with the weight of the vote decreasing linearly from 100% at T+14 days to 0% at T+28 days. The six candidates with the most votes at T+28 days are elected to replace the outgoing cohort.

The Suihubs Foundation will establish more detailed procedures and guidelines for the election process, including a candidate intake process to comply with Cayman Islands laws, a standard template for public nominations, and other measures to ensure a fair and transparent election. To maintain an independent Security Council, no single organization should have more than three candidates on the Council. Candidates with conflicts of interest or affiliations with direct competitors or exploitative histories are also not eligible. The DAO can change the rules for future elections through a Constitutional AIP, but not during an ongoing election.

Security Council members can only be removed from their positions if at least 10% of all Votable Tokens vote in favor of removal and at least 5/6 of all casted votes are in favor, or if at least 9 of the Security Council members vote for removal. If a member is removed, their seat remains unfilled until the next election unless at least 9 members vote to replace them before then.\\
