Something smell fishy? Has a vote has been taken and you don't think that the results are correct? If the vote has been done by ballot, you wonder if some votes have been computed in error. Or perhaps the vote was so close that you feel that it would be a good idea to contest the matter. Make a motion for division.

This is not a time to dawdle. If you have any question about the results of a vote, you must make a motion now. The chair announces the result and it stands if there is no protest. Other business of the meeting may be affected by this vote, so it's important to make certain that all is correct.

This motion is very important because it concerns the procedure of voting. It's so important that it does not require a second, and there can be no debate. A member feels the voting has been incorrectly or inappropriately carried out and makes a motion? That's it; the voting procedure is addressed. End of story.

To propose the motion, a member should simply say, “Division” or “I doubt [or question] the results of the vote.” The chair must then retake the vote using a different method than was used the first time. Was the vote taken by voice vote? It should be retaken another way, perhaps by a standing vote.

If there is still doubt about the vote — and there can be if the vote is being taken in a large room, for instance, and members shift around while the vote is being taken — the chair takes the vote again, perhaps by having members count off. The secretary should record the exact vote (the numbers of affirmative and negative votes) in the minutes. (Read more about voting and its inherent problems in Chapter 13.)