SBA Election flaws put results on hold
Sports Editor
Students looking for next year’s Student Body President will have to wait.
Student results from the student government elections have not been approved by the senate due to flaws in the election process. A hearing has been set to investigate. Cited flaws include a formal protest filed to the election committee and the shutout of the Hospitality Tourism College (HTC) students from Japan to electronically vote.
The only contested position in this year’s student body election was for Student Body President. Candidate Matt Fitzsimmons received the most votes defeating Alfredo “Miko” Calivo 147-93.
A protest has been filed by Presidential candidate Miko Calivo, reporting alleged violations of election rules by his opponent Fitzsimmons. The protest stems from the stack of Fitzsimmons’ campaign flyers that were left at a polling station reportedly found by current Student Body President Elliot Newlin.
Fitzsimmons reported having no knowledge of this.
“I heard there were flyers, and I don’t know how they got there or who put them there,” said Fitzsimmons. “I am puzzled by that one. Everyone that I gave my flyers to said that they didn’t put them there.”
The specific election rule states: “No campaigning will be permitted by any candidate within the polling area. Campaigning in the polling area includes standing or loitering, discussing issues or candidates, displaying posters, buttons, T-shirts or printed material regarding the election or escorting voters inside the polling area. Generally candidates are required to avoid polling areas, except to cast their own individual vote!”
The election rules are given to all candidates running for office at an informational meeting to discuss the rules and clarify any questions. These election rules are approved by the senate, and vary from year to year.
The protest also included eyewitness accounts of Fitzsimmons circling the polling stations during voting.
“I felt like [Fitzsimmons] was on the line of violating election rules by asking me in the polling station how he was doing in the election,” said Jessica Gonzalez, current SBA Vice- President. “He crossed through the station seven times.”
Fitzsimmons declined to comment on the accusation of loitering.
The other major issue that will be taken up at the hearing regards the HTC voting issue. In previous years the problem of HTC students being unable to vote was non-existant. Voting was done on ballots where students simply wrote their name, ID number, and their selection. Last year’s election was the first to primarily use the electronic system that only allowed students with a 965 at thebeginning of their student number to vote, whereas HTC students identification numbers start with HTC. The computer program did not recognize them as a valid ID, thus eliminating the possibility for them to vote. Although a formal protest was not filed last year or this year by a HTC student, the senate felt it was a strong enough issue to address at the hearing based on the SCCSBA constitution which states: “All students currently enrolled in Shoreline Community College are eligible to vote once in each SCCSBA election.”
Senate member Rachel Chang expressed reasons why she didn’t believe they should be able to vote. Her reasons were based on the credits which HTC students take that cannot be used for transfer purposes in the United States.
“My personal view is if they are on our campus and using our services, they should be able to vote,” responded Kristi Asplund, co-chair of the election committee.
At this week’s senate meeting, members of the election committee described the flyer incident as a “minor infraction.” They said there was no conclusive evidence that shows how long the flyers were there or who left them at the polling station. They urged the senate to approve the election results.
However, senate members declined to approve election results, instead they suggested a hearing be set to let all parties involved state their case. A motion was approved for all parties involved in the election to attend the hearing, including poll workers, candidates, and witnesses, to give the senate the most accurate information possible to make a decision. The motion included that if candidates could not be present, that they not be penalized.
“The senate has lots of flexibility as far as where they can go with this,” said Jessica Gonzalez. “It’s all in their hands.”
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The NYT adds that while no specific job offers were made, secretary of state isn't the only position the two former rivals discussed. Naturally, none of the papers has any named sources on this info, and the LAT even goes so far as to ponder aloud why staffers might have decided to leak this to the press. Is Clinton trying to create a tide of public support to bolster her chances? Maybe Obama is just testing public reaction to her possible nomination?The WP notes that Clinton's simple refusal to comment on the story marks a real departure from her earlier claims that she'd prefer to remain in the Senate. The NYT says a cabinet post may be appealing to Clinton because she's finding her influence in the Senate limited by her relatively junior standing. The LAT argues Clinton could face a contentious confirmation hearing if she's offered the job, due largely to her husband's ties to foreign donors, but the WP suggests Clinton would be buoyed through by her good relations with her fellow senators. The NYT frets about the influence of lobbyists on the Obama transition team. The WP goes inside with a look at the constraints the next secretary of state will have to work against while trying to shore up the department. The NYT fronts an interesting look at the role the Mormon Church played in outlawing gay marriage in California. The paper finds the church gave as much as $20 million to an organization working to build support for a gay marriage ban. The NYT's story might focus on the Mormons initially, but the story broadens to include a range of religious organizations that worked together to support the ban. But what's fascinating here isn't the groups that helped the measure succeed, it's the arguments they used to get undecided voters on their side. The piece is a fascinating post mortem and it's a welcome change from the parade of distressingly one-dimensional stories about black voters putting the ban over the top.Inside, the WP covers the backlash against supporters of the gay marriage ban, including actions against businesses and religious organizations. The reprisals have taken the usual forms of protests and boycotts, but also vandalism and possibly even the mailing of white powder to the headquarters of the Mormon Church.Tough, complicated "clamshell" packages are meant to deter shoplifting and protect the product inside, but the NYT says the packaging might just be hurting the consumer. The paper says that each year 6,000 Americans wind up in the emergency room after hurting themselves wrestling with an over-packaged product. The paper says some companies are finally listening to consumer complaints and opting for packaging that can be opened "without a saw."The WP fronts a piece on poor Congolese who fled violence and returned home to find looters had stolen the small luxuries they worked for years to afford.The best-selling book series 'Twilight' is set in the real-life small town of Forks, Washington. The LAT examines the effect the series' populatrity is having on the 3,100 person town, which drew 7,000 tourists so far this year. |