Office of Student Affairs
Student Judicial Board – 2016-2017
Student Union Presidential Elections
Spring 2016-2017
Student Elections Guidelines:
The success of the elections is dependent upon you, the candidates. It is your
opportunity to successfully promote yourself and convince students to vote.
We would like to create an atmosphere where you can have a contest, which is
exciting and good-natured, leading to a high turnout at the online voting. The
following rules are designed to help you achieve this.
ELECTION RULES AND REGULATIONS
NOMINATION
All students currently registered in UST are eligible to nominate themselves in
these elections given they fulfill the criteria set below and as per the Constitution.
Nomination forms are available within this Code. These must be completed and
signed by all candidates. To be on the ballot, all nominees must fill out a
nomination form and submit it to the Office of Student Affairs (OSA), before PM
: pm on / / , or e-mail it to the Student Judicial Board at [email protected]
All candidates must read and sign the Electoral Code and hand the form in with
their nomination papers. The SU President is the highest executive authority of the
SU. The President is responsible for management of the planning and
implementation of all SU activities and functions. The President is also responsible
for the selection of SU members as long as this selection does not contradict with
the Constitution.
CRITERIA
The following criteria must be satisfied before runners are considered official
candidates in the Student Union: Elections Requirements based upon the
Constitution of the Student body 2016-2017
Office of Student Affairs
Student Judicial Board – 2016-2017
Election and Term of Office
1. The SU term begins with the first day of the Summer Semester of each academic year and ends on the
first day of the Spring semester.
2. The SU is elected by the students four weeks before the end of the Spring Semester through a oneround simple majority secret online vote.
3. At the time of elections, nominees for President must fulfil the following criteria:
a. Full-time UST students.
b. Have a GPA of at least 3.0.
c. Completed two consecutive semesters as a full-time student at UST directly before the time of
nomination.
d. If a senior, he must not graduate before the fall semester of the following year.
4. Each nominee is required to submit a formal plan to the SJB prior to the beginning of the voting
process.
5. In the case there are no nominees for The SU President post, the nomination period will extend two
more weeks.
6. A tie in the SU elections shall be broken by a second round of voting between only members with the
highest votes.
Student Election Committee Composition
The committee shall be composed of:
● Dean of Students
 Student Affairs
 SJB members
Elections Code of Ethics:
● Transparency: candidates should be honest in their plans and promise only
what they can deliver.
● No anti-campaigning should be allowed by any means. (Anti-campaigning
means making personal accusation against the candidate by one of his
competitors).
● No campaigning based on religion, nationality, culture or gender will be
tolerated.
● No violation to the privacy of voting should be allowed. Voting should be
private and secure.
 Break the electoral silence by mass or individual campaigning should be
considered as a breach of conduct.
 Promoting voters by any means during electoral silence should be
considered as a break to the electoral silence.
● Written complaints should be considered against any campaigner, if violation is
detected, and should be submitted to the SJB.
Office of Student Affairs
Student Judicial Board – 2016-2017
● Each candidate should be responsible for the rumors/misleading information
coming out of his campaign. Candidates are also responsible for the actions of their
campaigners.
● Physical and/or verbal violence will be severely punished.
● Unethical conduct will result in automatic disqualification and referral to the
Student Conduct and disciplinary committee.
Brea
Any violation of the above will lead to one or more penalties according to the
Breach of Conduct article mentioned below. The penalties will be issued by
the SJB.
Jurisdiction:
The SJB is the highest authority for all elections. SJB decisions are taken by a
simple majority vote; only in the case of a tie, the non-voting electoral
commissioner shall not vote.
In the case of any violations, reports will be submitted to SJB and the decision on
whether to deduct or not shall be taken by SJB.
The SJB has the right to select the elections board, the list of the elections board
must be sent 48 hours before the elections days to all candidates. Each candidate
has the right to reject a maximum of three names from the board. The candidates
have no right to reject
Campaign Policy
Publicity and Campaigning Guidelines
The following are useful guidelines but are not exhaustive. You are advised to
strongly bear in mind the University’s rules.
● Publications include, but not limited to:
○ Flyers
○ Poster
○ Roll up
○ Stands
○ T-Shirts (colors without number)
● The content of the materials displayed or circulated is the responsibility of the
candidate. Material, which breaches the Constitution, election rules and equal
Office of Student Affairs
Student Judicial Board – 2016-2017
opportunity policy, will be removed and the candidate will receive a punishment in
accordance to the BREACH OF CONDUCT regulations.
Equal Protection
Students shall enjoy equal protection of laws and rules without regard to race,
religion, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, disability, creed, or any
unreasonable consideration.
● Do not place publicity in the following areas except the campaign area.
● Candidates must maintain good taste and improvement in creating their electoral
propaganda, ensuring that the campus looks well kept.
● Candidates are responsible for removal or repair of all materials that becomes
torn or damaged.
● Candidates must be respectful of other candidate's propaganda.
● for the purposes of the elections, the campus is defined as all University
buildings. Prior permission may be required for campaigning within these areas.
● please be aware that any individual found to have been campaigning in the
Library, harassing other candidates or students, misusing the computer facilities or
any other activity deemed to present a perceived or real attempt to manipulate the
outcome of the elections will be investigated and subjected to disciplinary
measures; this is to ensure fairness within the electoral silence.
● All publicity must be placed in a manner which will ensure no damage to
Students’ Union or University property or affect individuals’ safety.
● Any publicity deemed to be causing damage to property or that presents a safety
hazard will be removed immediately.
● The use of stickers is strictly prohibited.
● In case that an outsider was found campaigning, the candidate will face either
deduction or dismissal depending on the number of the warnings.
Office of Student Affairs
Student Judicial Board – 2016-2017
Breach of Conduct
Candidates found to be in breach of any of these guidelines stated above, or the
elections rules, will be issued with a series of written warnings from SJB according
to the following criteria:
5 votes
30 votes
warning will result in the disqualification of the candidate.
Further breaches will result in one or more of the following actions:
● Proscription from extra-curricular activities for a period ranging from one
semester to one year
● Twenty compulsory work hours at the university
● Any additional disciplinary action deemed necessary by the University
● Referral to the Disciplinary Committee
● Immediate dismissal without written warning.
The SJB reserves its right to determine the kind of warning based on the decision
of the election committee for the candidates who are found breaching any of the
guidelines stated above without written warnings.
Candidate Statement
I, ------------------------------------------------am a candidate for the Student Union --------------------------------------and agree to run my campaign in compliance with the
constitution of the General Assembly of the Student Body 2016-2017. The SJB has
explained these by-laws and has made clear any uncertainties I may have had about
them. I understand that failure to abide by any of these regulations will result in
disqualification from the elections. I further certify my eligibility for the elections.
Office of Student Affairs
Student Judicial Board – 2016-2017
Warning Format
This is to certify that Mr./Ms. ___________________________ SID
____________ violated the Student Judicial Board SJB Elections Rules and
Procedures. Second violation will be filed a case against the campaigner and will
be subject to the SJB that might result up to dismissal.
Student Court Members
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Student Candidate
----------------------------------Date: ----------------------------
Office of Student Affairs
Student Judicial Board – 2016-2017
Student Union President Nomination Application
Name: ____________________________________________________________
Cumulative GPA: ___________________ SID: ___________________________
Year: __ Foundation __ sophomore __ junior __ Senior
Major:
_________________________________________________________________
Cell phone:
___________________________________________________________
E-mail:
________________________________________________________________
Please make sure you fill out this form completely and return to the Office of
Student Affairs Or by email to the Student Judicial Board SJB
[email protected]