RESIDENT STUDENT ASSOCIATION POLICIES & PROCEDURES
REVISED 16 JANAURY, 2003
1.6. Election
Information Meetings
1.9. Registration
of Candidacy
1.10. Official
Ballot Reference Sheet Information
1.12. Rules
Violations and Penalties
1.14. Operating
Times and Locations
3.5. Long
Distance Phone Calls
4.3. Community
council allocations
For each election, an individual or committee will be appointed by the Executive to operate the election. The General Body will confirm the appointment. Those appointed will not be candidates in the election.
All members of the Association as defined by Article I of the Association By-Laws, regardless of class standing, shall be registered voters for all general elections. The records of the office of residence life shall determine official residency status of all students.
The General Body may agree to place policy questions on the ballot for the resident body in general to answer. These questions may be placed on the ballot by a majority of the General Body and may appear on the ballot at any Association Election provided for here.
Questions may also be placed on the ballot by petition of the residents if a petition including full text and an argument for passage that meets the requirements of the Nominating Petition for candidates is submitted to the Association President at least four weeks before the election. The petition requesting a question must contain at least 100 signatures of current residents.
All questions must be written to be answered “yes” or “no.” A majority of the ballots cast with an answer to the question will decide whether the question is adopted, and the result will be binding.
Election Information Packets will be distributed prior to the elections period. These Election Information Packets will include a copy of or a web address for the responsibilities for the positions being elected, portions of these policies concerning Registration and Ballots, Campaigning (including current Residence Life policies), Rules Violations and Penalties, and Counting Votes and Announcing Results; forms for Nominating petitions and Candidate Questionnaires; the schedule of events for the election being held; and the names of the Elections Committee members.
The Nominating Petitions will include the name of the candidate, the office sought, and spaces for voter signatures and local telephone numbers. The petitions will not request voter identification numbers. Voter signatures on the Petitions indicate that the voter feels that the candidate is qualified to fun for the office sought. Voters may sign as many Petitions for each office as they wish. The candidate or any of his or her supporters may gather signatures on the Petitions.
Candidates for executive offices must gather the signatures of at least 100 registered voters on Nominating Petitions. Candidates for the representative offices must gather the signatures of at least 50 registered voters on Nominating Petitions.
The Candidate Questionnaires will include, at a minimum, the name of the candidate, the office sought and the following questions: “Why are you interested in serving in this office?” and “What makes you qualified for this office?” Other questions may be included at the discretion of the Elections Committee. Completed Questionnaires will be posted in the lobby and/or selected common areas of each community during the campaign period and made available at all polling stations.
Each candidate who has submitted a Nominating Petition
containing the required number of signatures and the completed Candidate
Questionnaire to the Elections Committee by
The names of all registered will be written out on a single piece of paper, divided by office sought and with a number that identifies that candidate. Legal names as registered with the University Registrar will be the only identification given; no affiliations or nicknames will be listed. This Ballot Reference Sheet will be fixed to the voting table and made available to students to review before casting ballots. The text of all qualifying Issue Questions will also appear on the Ballot Reference Sheet. All candidates in each election must meet with the Chair of the Elections Committee two (2) days prior to the election to verify the accuracy of the Ballot Reference Sheet. Responsibility for this meeting lies with the candidate.
The Ballot Reference Sheet will include the following language in the instructions: “You may write in the full, legal name of any other eligible candidate for any office listed here. The name must be legible, be as recorded in the records of the Registrar, and must be paired to the proper office.” The section of the ballot for each office will include a blank space labeled “Write-in” where the voter may enter the full, legal name of any person who does not appear as a registered candidate for that office. Voters will be given enough space to cast as many write-in votes as they would be able to cast for registered candidates.
The Ballot will be prepared with a section for each office or groups of offices and each issue question. Each candidate section will contain the names of the candidates under the position they are running for. At the bottom of each candidate section will be the write-in votes line. The questions section will contain the number of the question and the words “YES” and “NO” with blank spaces beside them for the student to indicate a preference.
Each potential voter will present a currently valid University Student Identification Card to the Elections official at the polling place to request a Ballot. That official will ensure that the person is a registered voter who has not yet voted in that Election by comparing it with the office of residence life’s list. The elections official working the ballot table will issue each resident a ballot. No person will get more than one Ballot at a time under any circumstances. If the voter completes his or her Ballot incorrectly, he or she must request a new one before putting anything in the Ballot Box. The Elections Official must destroy the incorrect Ballot before issuing a replacement. After the voter has been issued a Ballot, that person’s name will be taken off the voter rolls for that election. No person may vote without presenting a currently valid University Student Identification Card. No person may vote on behalf of any other person. No absentee Ballots will be issued. No present representative, executive, candidate in the current election, or other holders of the same office being elected at that time will be present in the polling area except to vote.
All candidates, whether registered and on the ballot or write-ins, are subject to all campaign rules.
Formal public campaigning is defined as general announcements of candidacy, posting of promotional material in public view, distribution of fliers or handouts, or canvassing residents of University-owned housing for votes.
Formal public campaigning is restricted to the period
beginning at
Private discussions of candidacy, circulation of Nominating Petitions and solicitation of promotional support are not considered formal public campaigning.
No campaigning of any kind may be conducted within 50 feet of the polling stations while polls are open.
No person will make a general announcement of candidacy for any office until the formal campaign period begins. This includes notices in newspapers or circulation of any material other than Nominating Petitions to anyone not directly involved in his or her campaign effort.
No person shall post any material promoting a candidacy in public view until the formal campaign begins. This includes outdoor and indoor signs or posters on campus and outdoor signs or posters off campus.
Fliers may be distributed by hand during formal campaigning Fliers will not be are left on tables, chairs or any other surface on campus. Each candidate will ensure that his or her fliers do not litter the campus. Candidates will not use on-campus mail to distribute campaign materials.
Any student may report alleged violations of the campaign roles. Reports will be made to the Elections Committee, and a written record of allegations made will be kept The Elections Committee will meet as soon as is practicable to determine if the alleged violation is valid and if the candidate or ticket of candidates is responsible. If the violation is found to be valid and the candidate or ticket is responsible, the Chair will communicate that determination to the candidate or ticket in writing immediately.
Penalties will be determined by the Elections Committee.
Candidates or tickets of candidates who have been assessed penalties by the Elections Committee may appeal that decision to the General Body. The General Body will make a determination on the validity of the violation and the appropriateness of the penalty. Decisions of the General Body in matters concerning the election of its members may be appealed to the Senate and Executive of the Student Government Association
The candidate with the most votes for each office will be elected.
In the event of a tie, the candidates involved in the tie will ask to appear before the Elections Committee at an appointed time and place. In the event that candidate can not be present, they may appoint a student to represent them.
Straws will be prepared for each candidate, equal in length except one. The candidates will draw straws to determine the winner. This tie breaking should be completed within 24 hours of the election.
If there is a tie on an issue question, it will not be approved. Issue ties will not be broken.
The Chair of the Elections Committee will compile and announce the results immediately after the counting is completed. The announcement will be made by telephone to all candidates, in writing to The Xavier Newswire, and by posting in the residence halls, apartment offices, and on the web site. The Elections Committee will certify the results in writing and deliver that certification to the General Body at the next General meeting to be included in the historical record. Written announcements and certifications will include the names of all candidates (registered and written in), the number of votes received by that candidate, and the total number of votes cast for each office.
Association funds should only be used for Association activities approved by the Association representatives and executives.
Student Government Association funding shall be used for forum of expression, programming, recognition, and leadership & community development expenses. Funds acquired from fundraising activities, funds leftover at the end of the spring semester, rollover from previous years, and requests to Student Senate for additional will be allocated to National Affiliation expenses (i.e. conferences).
In the event that community councils have individual allocations, the councils must use their funds for all of their operational expenses.
General meetings will be scheduled by the President.
All Representative and Executives are required to be present at all meetings to which they are responsible. Anticipated absences should be made aware to the meeting chair as early as possible. The Chair may ask the person to send a person in their place. The Association Executive will review any repeated absences for reasons other than illness. The person is expected to try to the best of their ability to resolve the problem. If it is found that the person cannot fulfill the duties of their position in attending meetings, the Executive may recommend that the person resign from their position or submit a request for removal from office to the General Body.
All representatives and executives are required to conduct themselves in an orderly matter at meetings. They shall respect all people both present and not present, and their views. Any conduct that is felt to be inappropriate should be handled immediately. If the conduct continues, the Executive will review the conduct. If it is found that the person has failed to do everything in their power to conduct themselves appropriately, the Executive may recommend that the person resign from their position or submit a request for removal from office to the General Body.
The National Association of College and University Residence Halls (NACURH) operates the Of the Month (OTM) awards program. OTMs recognize outstanding accomplishments in the category submitted. OTMs are submitted to the regional office for possibility of receiving a regional and/or nation award in that category. The National Communications Coordinator will manage the OTM process. OTMs are due from the NCC to the regional office by the 15th of every month.
All students, especially Association representatives and executives, are encouraged to nominate someone for an OTM by filling out an OTM form. The preferred method is filling out the OTM form on the web site. The council’s Vice President of Administration should also have paper copies for residents in each community, available from the National Communications Coordinator.
Refer to the web site for guidance on writing OTMs.
OTMs should be presented by a Vice President of Administration or the NCC. The General Body will vote to accept the OTM for submittal to the regional office. If more than one nomination is made in a single category, the General Body will vote for the best OTM to be sent on. The NCC will determine the dates OTMs must be submitted and voted on.
The Resident Student Association is a member of the Central Atlantic Affiliate of College and University Residence Halls (NACURH), a regional group within the National Association of College and University Residence Halls (NACURH).
The National Communications Coordinator serves as our representative within CAACURH. The NCC votes on behalf of the Association in CAACURH and NACURH business meetings and networks actively with other schools to help find ways of better carrying out our mission.
There are three conferences each year attended by the Association:
· CAACURH Regional Conference
· CAACURH Mini-No Frills Conference
· NACURH Conference
For each conference, a delegation is funded by the Association to represent the University, and to participate in the various learning activities in order to bring back ideas for our Association to implement.
The President and NCC will attend each conference. For the regional and national conference, the Executive shall select additional students to be part of a delegation. The Executive will determine requirements for the students selected.