Jennifer Todd Wins Academy Board Runoff Election Over Jason Blum

This is the fourth time in Academy history that a tie occurred in the balloting

Oscars statuettes
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Veteran producer Jennifer Todd was elected over low-budget horror master Jason Blum in a runoff election for the board of the film academy.

Todd and Blum represented the fourth tie in the history of  the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences last week, resulting in the runoff election that swayed in Todd’s favor on Wednesday.

“Todd joins incumbents Albert Berger and Mark Johnson in representing the branch and will assume her post as of July 1,” an AMPAS spokesperson said.

Todd has had a diverse and lengthy career, producing films like Johnny Depp’s “Alice in Wonderland” adaptation at Disney, to indies like the Rashida Jones breakthrough “Celeste & Jesse Forever.” She is currently the president of Matt Damon and Ben Affleck’s Pear Street Films.

Read the full announcement from the Academy:

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today announced that Jennifer Todd has won the runoff election for the open Producers Branch seat on the 2018-19 Board of Governors. Todd joins incumbents Albert Berger and Mark Johnson in representing the branch and will assume her post as of July 1.

Todd and Jason Blum tied for the seat in the Board election last week, and Producers Branch members were asked to vote in the runoff. This is the fourth time in Academy history that a tie occurred in the balloting. Runoff elections were held in 2009 in the Directors Branch, 2015 in the Writers Branch, and 2016 in the Film Editors Branch.

The Academy’s 17 branches are each represented by three governors, who may serve up to three consecutive three-year terms. The Board directs the Academy’s strategic vision, preserves the organization’s financial health, and assures the fulfillment of its mission.

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