OWASP Global Board Elections

The OWASP Foundation was established in 2001 as an open community and software security resource. Since then, OWASP has grown to be globally recognized as a credible source for application security standards (see industry citations). Individuals typically find OWASP when searching the internet for information about software security - and they are happy to find a reliable source of knowledge built by an extremely open and passionate community. OWASP is open to anyone. Anyone can attend OWASP’s vendor agnostic local chapter meetings, participate in regional and global conferences, and contribute to the many OWASP projects. And anyone can start a new project, form a new chapter, or lend their expertise to help an OWASP Global Committee.

The OWASP Foundation Board of Directors currently consists of seven elected volunteers. These unpaid volunteers dedicate themselves to the organizational mission and playing a pivotal role in the software security community. OWASP conducts democratic elections of its Board Members to enable bottom-up advancement of its mission.

Recent Board Elections

General Election Timeline

  • Notify the current board member(s) whose term is up
  • Call for Candidates Opens
  • Submission for Questions From the Community for the Candidate Interviews
  • Email Reminder Call For Candidates
  • Email Reminder Call for Questions from the Community
  • Email Reminder Call For Candidates
  • Email Reminder Call for Questions from the Community
  • Email Reminder Call For Candidates
  • Email Reminder Call for Questions from the Community
  • Deadline for Call for Candidates Closes
  • Deadline for Questions from the Community
  • Verification of candidates
  • Candidates announced via email and social media
  • The 6-7 top questions from the community will be selected & shared with Candidates
  • Email Reminder Membership Required to Vote
  • Email Reminder Membership Required to Vote
  • Candidates to post their videos
  • Email/Social Media notifying the community the recordings are posted
  • Final Email Reminder Membership Required to Vote
  • Membership Deadline
  • Voting opens
  • Voting closes
  • Results shared with all candidates
  • Results shared via email and social media

Global Board of Directors’ Primary Responsibilities

The OWASP Foundation Board of Directors currently consists of seven elected volunteers who serve a two year term. These unpaid volunteers dedicate themselves to the organizational mission and playing a pivotal role in the software security community. Members of the Global Board of Directors are responsible for setting the strategic direction of the organization and ensuring the financial integrity of the Foundation.

Detailed information on meeting requirements, roles and responsibilities within the board, term limits, and elections is found in the OWASP Foundation Bylaws. The Board of Directors Code of Conduct and details of the orientation and on-boarding process are found on our Governance page.

Please reach out to our current Board Members if you’d like additional information on what it’s like to be a Global Board member at the OWASP Foundation.

Additional Responsibilities that the Global Board of Directors must adhere to can be found on the Foundation Governance page

Eligibility Requirements for Board Candidates

To run for a seat on the OWASP Global Board of Directors in 2025, candidates must:

  • Be a Voting Member in Good Standing
  • Must hold Individual Membership (the only class with voting rights).
  • Must have maintained this status continuously for 12 months prior to September 30 of the year before the election.
  • Complimentary Members are not eligible to run.
Submit Required Candidacy Materials
  • A biography.
  • Current membership status.
  • Update your candidate page on a brief statement on why you are the best candidate and why you wish to be elected.
  • The OWASP Foundation will publish candidate pages with submitted materials.

These must be submitted before the close of the Call for Candidates.

Comply with OWASP Bylaws and Election Policy
  • Candidates must follow all rules outlined in the official OWASP Bylaws and Election Policy.
  • If elected, Directors must maintain their Individual Membership throughout their term.
Additional Participation
  • Candidates are encouraged to record a short video answering community questions.
  • Candidates are encouraged to participate in a panel session to discuss their candidacy with other candidates.
Important Notes on Policy Changes

New Bylaws (Effective July 8, 2024):

  • Introduced the concept of Voting Members (Individual Members with voting rights).
  • Established that only Voting Members can vote or run for the Board.

Election Policy (Approved September 25, 2024):

  • Clarifies that candidates must be Voting Members in good standing from the Membership Deadline day (September 30) of the prior year through the end of the election process.

2024 Exception:

  • The 12-month Voting Membership requirement was waived due to the timing of the new bylaws and policy, allowing both complimentary and individual memberships to run in 2024.
  • This waiver does not apply to 2025 or future elections.

2026 Changes:

  • There are proposed changes to the Election policy which - if approved - will change the method of voting to single transferrable vote and clarify Director Qualifications. These changes will be communicated to the community well in advance of the 2026 elections. These changes will not impact the 2025 elections.

If in doubt, the published Bylaws and Election policy should be consulted. This is an explanatory overview. The relevant sections of the Bylaws are:

The relevant sections of the Election policy (approved 25 September 2024) are:

If you are interested in running for a seat on the OWASP Global Board please submit your intention along with the requirements listed above. All submissions will be reviewed and verified by the OWASP Foundation.

Who Can Vote?

As of the adoption of the new OWASP Bylaws on July 8, 2024, OWASP Individual Members who are in good standing as of the published Membership Deadline (usually September 30) of the election year are eligible to vote in the OWASP Global Board Elections.

OWASP Individual members are defined in the bylaws as “The Individual Member class has the following subclasses: Standard, Regional, Student, Lifetime, and Distinguished Lifetime. Only the Board shall grant Distinguished Lifetime Membership.” Complimentary memberships are not considered Individual Memberships and therefore do not have voting rights.

If you are not an Individual member yet, we encourage you to join by the Membership deadline (usually September 30).

How to Vote?

Eligible voting members will receive an email to their registered email address from [email protected] with subject “BALLOT FOR OWASP [YEAR] Board Election”

This email will include a specific link for you to cast your vote. Please do NOT share this link with anyone.
It is a specific link JUST FOR YOU!

Additionally, eligible voting members will also receive an email from the OWASP Foundation notifying them that their ballot has been sent. In the instance that they did not receive a ballot they are asked to contact us.

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