Guilbeau stressed that he had never seen such a high participation rate in other votes or elections by members, and was pleased that so many members felt strongly enough about the issue to turn in their ballots.
While 362 members voted in favor of the name change, 207 opposed it. The NBFAA has 2,483 members according to Guilbeau. “It was exciting to see the membership so engaged,†Guilbeau said. “As the vote indicated, a large percentage of our members voted for the name change, but since we did not reach a two-thirds majority, we will continue to use the NBFAA name. Our vision and mission as an association remains strong and focused,†he said.