ICANN At-Large Community Selects Justine Chew for Board Director Seat 15

The ICANN At-Large community has formally nominated Justine Chew to serve on the ICANN Board of Directors, marking an important leadership development within the global Internet governance framework. Chew will assume Seat 15, succeeding León Felipe Sánchez Ambía, who has held the position since 3 November 2017. Her three-year term will begin at the close of ICANN87 on 22 October 2026.

An advocate and solicitor of the High Court of Malaya based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Chew brings extensive legal expertise alongside years of active engagement in ICANN’s policy ecosystem. She currently serves as Vice Chair of the At-Large Advisory Committee (ALAC), acts as the ALAC liaison to the Generic Names Supporting Organization (GNSO), and represents the Asian, Australasian and Pacific Islands region within the ALAC. Her nomination reflects a deep history of participation across ICANN’s multistakeholder processes.

A Six-Month Community-Driven Selection Process

The nomination process extended over six months and concluded on 19 February 2026. Four candidates submitted Expressions of Interest for Seat 15, all of whom were confirmed eligible: Sébastien Bachollet, Justine Chew, Maureen Hilyard, and Rafael “Lito” Ibarra. Throughout the process, members of the At-Large community had opportunities to engage directly with the candidates through written and oral exchanges before casting their votes.

The final selection was made jointly by the 15 members of the At-Large Advisory Committee and the five Regional At-Large Organization chairs, underscoring ICANN’s bottom-up governance model. In accordance with ICANN’s bylaws, the nomination will now proceed to the Empowered Community for formal appointment.

What This Means for ICANN Governance

This decision highlights the continued influence of the At-Large community in shaping ICANN’s Board composition and reinforces the role of individual Internet users in the organization’s multistakeholder structure. Board directors selected through this pathway are tasked with representing the broader public interest while navigating the evolving technical and policy challenges facing the domain name system.

Chew’s upcoming term signals continuity combined with experienced leadership drawn directly from ICANN’s community structures. As the organization advances through new policy cycles and operational priorities, the addition of her perspective at the Board level further strengthens the link between grassroots engagement and strategic oversight.