Bob Waldrop, acting director of the association, said 1,865 ballots were mailed out in mid-February to driftnet fishermen with Bristol Bay permits.

The ballots, which must be postmarked by April 7, will be tallied by an independent accounting firm in Anchorage, Waldrop said.

Bristol Bay salmon account for roughly one-third of the total value of all Alaska salmon, yet the price paid to fishermen for Bristol Bay sockeye is lower than for sockeye harvested in most other Alaska regions — and the price gap is growing wider.

The Bristol Bay RSDA's goals include working to raise the quality of the harvest, promoting the region's seafood and seeking improvements to the area's infrastructure. The RSDAs, which are authorized by the state of Alaska, also may conduct market research, education and product development.

To fund its work, permit holders must vote to approve a tax assessment on their harvests. On May 19, 2006, Bristol Bay driftnet permit holders approved a 1 percent assessment. That tax was deducted from the harvesters' fish tickets beginning last season. Tax revenues from the drift fleet will start flowing to the RSDA in late 2007.

Setnet permit holders chose not to approve such an assessment, so at least for the moment, the RSDA represents only the drift fleet.

The interim board of directors includes Robert Heyano of Dillingham, president; Hans Nicholson of Anchorage, vice president; and Warren “Barney” Johnson of Arlington, Wash., secretary-treasurer. The four other board members are: Scott Stevenson of Newport, Wash., Fred Pike of Naknek; William Johnson of Dillingham; and Chris McDowell of Juneau.

Terms of office will be staggered, to allow for new elections every year.

Candidates for seat A, a three-year term for Alaska residents, include Heyano, Pike and Dan Kingsley of Pilot Point. Candidates for seat B, a two-year term for state residents, are McDowell, Randolph Alvarez of Naknek, Fritz Johnson of Dillingham, and Alan Welsh of Anchorage. Candidates for seat C, a one-year term for residents, are Gregory Anelson Jr. of Newhalen, Mark Buckley of Kodiak, and Timothy Gervais of Ruby.

Candidates for Seat D, a three-year term for nonresidents, include Dominic “Nick” Lee, and David Harsila, both of Seattle. Vying for seat E, a two-year term for nonresidents, are Kevin Komadina of Kirkland, Ariz., and Mike LaRussa of Seattle.

Seat F, a one-term term open to residents and nonresidents, drew nominations for interim board member Barney Johnson, plus Ben Blakey of Bainbridge Island, Wash., Matt Marinkovich of Friday Harbor, Wash., and John Webb of Astoria, Wash.

The four candidates for a three-year term on Seat G, open to residents and nonresidents, are Buck Gibbons of Seattle, Dick Hellberg of Warrenton, Ore., Joe Faith of Dillingham, and Shawn Dochtermann of Kodiak.