N.Y. Cooperative Corporations Law § 61

§ 61. Directors from districts. The by-laws may provide for the use of\none or more of the following: (a) that the territory in which the\ncorporation has members shall be divided into designated districts, and\nthat directors shall be nominated or elected therefrom in a designated\nnumber and manner, either by the members therein or by district\ndelegates elected by such members or by the membership at large; (b)\nthat primary nominations or elections shall be held in each district to\nnominate the directors apportioned to such districts and that the result\nof all such primary elections may be ratified by the next regular\nmeeting of the corporation or may be considered final as to the\ncorporation; (c) that, in the case of a corporation having local\nassociations, incorporated or otherwise, affiliated with it or a member\nof it, election of a designated number of directors may be by the\nmembers of such local association at a meeting thereof, followed by\ntransmission of the ballots and of a certified canvass thereof to the\nannual meeting of the corporation; (d) that one or more directors may be\nappointed by any public official or commission or by the other\ndirectors. Directors so appointed shall represent primarily the interest\nof the general public in such corporation; need not be members of the\ncorporation; and shall not constitute more than one-fifth of the entire\nnumber of directors.\n