My statement for the USCF Election

Chess is my life! This is why it’s so important to me to help chess. Unfortunately for all chess lovers, the USCF has had many serious problems in recent years. I would like to help turn this federation around.

Here are some of the past major problems that need to be corrected in order for the USCF to prosper:

- Too many bad financial and business decisions
- Too many decisions made for political reasons instead of the best interests of US chess and the USCF
- Too much micromanaging of staff by the Executive Board
- Too much frivolous spending without long-term vision
- Too little effort to raise much-needed revenues to ensure the good health of this federation
- Too little focus on positive chess promotion in the United States
- Too little focus on many membership categories such as adult, collegiate, correspondence, and military chess
- Too little effort to retain our memberships, especially the scholastic members
- Too little integrity, honesty, credibility and professionalism by some board members
- Too little accountability of our board members
- Too little respect for our members, partners, supporters and sponsors
- Too little willingness to keep the USCF up with the times

The current state of our federation is not healthy! We’re losing money year after year while other chess organizations thrive. Sponsors don’t want to deal with us. Supporters are tired of our internal political destruction. Some board members have repeatedly violated the USCF code of ethics as well as the members' trust. There is no end to this destruction in sight unless we demand positive changes by putting the most capable people in place.

Here are some of my areas of focus for the USCF if I’m elected:

- Restore respectability, integrity, credibility and professionalism to the USCF
- Reestablish a sound and balanced budget
- Develop strong cooperation and support for adult, scholastic, collegiate, correspondence and military chess
- Establish a strong professional marketing and PR system
- End the petty and destructive politics

I highly recommend three other candidates. Here are my reasons:

Paul Truong: He’s by far the most successful person in chess marketing, promotion and public relations. He can bring something to this federation that no one could in the past.

Mikhail Korenman: He has a strong record in promoting and organizing chess events. He’s a member of the USCF Scholastic Council. He’s well respected by many people, including former Russian President Mikhail Gorbachev, 7-time World Champion Anatoly Karpov, and many others.

Randy Bauer: He has had tremendous success as the budget director of the state of Iowa, dealing with a multibillion dollar budget. We need his financial expertise.

Please join me in this mission to reform the USCF. The future of the USCF is in our own hands. We cannot continue to status quo. It’s not working. It’s sinking this federation. In the upcoming months, I’ll discuss many important issues in detail at www.susanpolgar.blogspot.com and www.uschess.blogspot.com.

Thanks for your support!