Candidates still stepping forward
The Signpost understands there will be more nominations over the next day. Last-minute nominees are urged to jump into the system running—there is a statement to write and questions to respond to. There will be a two-day fallow period on Wednesday and Thursday for further discussion and Q&A between voters and candidates, as well as for election staff to make technical preparations. Voting will open via the SecurePoll system at 00:01 UTC Friday and will run for 10 days until Sunday 5 December. The four scrutineers—all uninvolved stewards—will take up to a week to announce the tally, and Jimbo Wales will make the formal announcement shortly after they post the tally on the election page. Up to 11 new arbitrators are expected to take office from 1 January. Until the close of voting in two weeks, voters are invited to ask an individual question of each candidate, and may participate in open discussion of the candidates on their respective candidate talk pages, which are collected on a single page for the convenience of voters.
Arbitrator Risker has written a FAQ for current and prospective candidates. Among the issues she addresses for newly appointed arbitrators are the volume of email correspondence, identification requirements, and realistic expectations. The FAQ clarifies that the Committee will provide assistance to successful candidates to move through the identification process (concerning which a Wikimedia Foundation staff member issued a recent statement), to set up email accounts, and to induct them smoothly into the practicalities of being a Committee member.