IUSA proposes election reforms

After the ethical scandal surrounding the 2008 IUSA elections, when the winning ticket was disqualified for six election code violations, the group’s congress is considering several changes to improve the current code.

POLLING TIMES
During past elections, polls were open from 10 a.m. on the first day of elections to 10 p.m. on the second day. This 36-hour window allowed tickets to campaign in bars during the evening polling hours, an activity IUSA Student Body Vice President Jack McCarthy said reflected negatively on IUSA.

The new code would allow polls to be open from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. on two successive election days, creating two 12-hour polling windows.

EXPENDITURES
The proposal would limit campaign expenditures to $5,000 per ticket. In the past, tickets could spend as much money as they raised.

POLLING LOCATIONS
Last year, polling locations were reserved and staffed by IUSA elections commissioners, said Andrew Hahn, the congress member responsible for the initial revision of the code, which he said was ineffective and costly.

The new code proposes that neutral, highly trafficked locations will be reserved ahead of time and staffed by no more than two members of each ticket, with no more than three computers. Less-trafficked locations could also be reserved by tickets, Hahn said.

VIOLATIONS AND DISQUALIFICATIONS
The code specifies that violating the rules or other University rules would constitute a violation of the election code.

These stipulations weren’t included in past versions of the code, which didn’t specify the meaning of disqualification. The proposed code would limit disqualification to one
election cycle.