2025 Association of Graduates Election Results Certified

U.S. Air Force Academy, Colorado (March 4, 2025) – The Association of Graduates board of directors secretary today certified the results of the 2025 AOG election and approved their release to members. Under the AOG bylaws, an election concludes upon certification by the board secretary.

The 2025 election, occurring from Feb. 3 to March 3, was for five elected seats on the AOG’s 16-member board of directors, and member-proposed changes to the Association’s articles of incorporation and bylaws. The board governs the AOG and consists of 11 elected directors, four appointed directors and the president of the Class Advisory Senate. Elected and appointed directors serve four-year terms.

The AOG conducted the election through an experienced third-party election management firm, Survey & Ballot Systems, based in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. The AOG has worked with SBS in past elections. SBS conducted the election for the AOG through a secure site, where members accessed their randomly ordered ballot and voted. SBS gathered all ballots in its secure voting system and delivered a report on the results to the AOG on March 4 at 12:41p.m. Mountain Time.

The certified results account for 8,907 members of the AOG participating in the election among 38,952 voting-eligible members, a 22.87 percent participation rate. To have been eligible to vote in the 2025 election, a member had to have joined the Association of Graduates by Dec. 20, 2024.

Board candidates
Sixteen Air Force Academy graduates ran for the five open elected seats on the AOG board of directors, appearing on the ballot by way of petition or nomination as permitted by the bylaws. The following five candidates, listed by graduation year, received the most votes among the field of 16 and will take their seats on the board at the regularly scheduled April 25 meeting:

  • Col. (Ret.) Dan Bohlin, Class of 1971
  • Lt. Col. (Ret.) Denny J. Merideth, III, Class of 1973
  • Lt. Gen. (Ret.) Robert “Rod” Bishop, Class of 1974
  • Brig. Gen. (Ret.) Christopher Walker, Class of 1988
  • Maj. Alexander Fogassy, Class of 2012

Member-proposed changes
The 2025 ballot included member-proposed changes to the AOG articles of incorporation and bylaws. Voters could approve or not approve the changes. Members of the AOG, under Colorado law, have the right to propose changes to the governing documents of the organization. The certified results indicated that a quorum was reached, and the proposed changes were approved. With the proposed changes to the articles and bylaws approved by the membership, the board secretary will update both documents accordingly and post them to the AOG’s governance website.

The certified results as issued by SBS to the AOG are available here. The results include the following:

  • Summary: Indicates eligible voters, total returns and percent returned.
  • Results:
    • Lists all candidates and vote tallies for each. “DECISION” indicates the five receiving the most votes who thereby won election to the board.
    • Lists vote tallies for the member-proposed changes to the articles of incorporation and bylaws.
  • Voters by member type: Under the AOG bylaws, membership types with voting rights include graduate members and associate members. The bylaws state that associate members who joined prior to 2005 retain the right to vote in AOG elections.
  • Voters by graduation year: Indicates total members, total ballots received, and percentage received across every USAFA class, from 1959 to 2024.
  • DirectVote® Rating

“On behalf of the Association of Graduates board of directors, I am pleased to certify the 2025 election results and congratulate the five candidates who received the most votes and will assume their duties at the April 25 meeting,” said board secretary Dr. Ginny Caine Tonneson, a member of the USAFA Class of 1980. “We thank all 16 candidates who stepped forward to serve our Association by running for the board, and we thank all members who took the time to participate in this election.”

Appointed directors
At the April 25, AOG board meeting, where the five newly elected directors will take their seats, the board will also welcome two new appointed directors. The two appointed directors will be named in March, and they will join the board at the April 25 meeting.

To learn more about the 2025 election results, please visit our election page.

About the Association of Graduates
The mission of the Association of Graduates is to support the U.S. Air Force Academy, serve graduates and preserve the heritage of the institution. It fulfills this mission with the Air Force Academy Foundation by facilitating and supporting the lifelong engagement of USAFA graduates.