Potential changes include:
• The winner requires a majority vote of 51 percent.
• In the event of a run-off election, the president and adviser will make the final decision whether or not the run-off election will take place.
• Each member of the potential executive slates must take 12 credit hours at the time of nomination.
• Candidates will conduct themselves according to the Student Code of Conduct. If this is violated, it will be sent to the University Review Board.
• The elections board chair will determine the official close of the nomination convention.
• Candidates must stop use of Ball State webmail, Banner, Blackboard or Gradebook for campaigning 24 hours before the election.
• Candidates are responsible for official campaign material, including social media.
• Violations are up to the discretion of the elections board with approval of the SGA adviser.
• The fines are separate from the campaign fund.
• Campaigning shall not obstruct functions of university. This includes instructional time.
• The current executive slate will not run, fund or help any candidates or slates.
• Candidates appeal penalties with the University Review Board.
• If a violation is equal to the maximum amount, the slate will have the opportunity to contest it through Student Rights before it is made public to the student body.
• The sheriff member of the elections board, who conducts investigations, will be appointed by director of Student Rights instead of by the SGA president with the approval of the SGA adviser.
Problems during this year’s Student Government Association elections can be prevented in the future if proposed changes to the elections code are adopted.
On Wednesday afternoon, SGA shared a draft of changes with the elections code.
The elections code is typically revised every fall, but SGA adviser Jennifer Jones-Hall expressed her desire after the election to see the code revised as soon as possible.
If passed, the elections code will give the elections board more power to decide on violations.
Discretion of the elections board
Current SGA President Chloe Anagnos said during each election, people will “tattletale” on each other, bringing minute violations to the attention of the board.
It is typically an unspoken rule, she said, that these violations are up to the board’s discretion, but it would be included in writing.
“It’s always a rule of thumb that if there is a stupid poster violation that it is up to the discretion of the board, but it has not been in the code,” Anagnos said. “Let’s put it in writing so people know.”
In this year’s election, social media violations were brought to the elections board after the election, in an attempt to disqualify Cardinal Connection. The elections board decided in a vote the Wednesday after the election against the alleged violations. No fines or violations were issued.
If changes are passed, all violations will be up to the discretion of the elections board, and the SGA adviser must approve it.
Run-off election
Jones-Hall and Alex Sventeckis, former elections board chair, expressed their concern over the fact that there was no method for contesting an election.
If passed, the elections board will have the power to call for a run-off election, specifically if there is less than 51 percent of the vote, which is another potential change. This is a decision made with the discretion of the president and the adviser.
Anagnos said this clause should give the board, president and adviser more power to make decisions.
“It would have been nice if Jones-Hall and I would have had more say in the election,” she said. “If there were more voices in her office for two hours, we may have come up with a solution sooner.”
Neutrality of standing executive board
This year, there were concerns about the relationship between current Vice President Alyssa France and Cardinal Connection, but no violation was found because it was not against the elections code.
With the changes, the elections code would explicitly state that executive board members are paid employees of the university and cannot “help or fund” candidates or a slate.
“Just because of allegations,” Anagnos said. “I think Jones-Hall is going to have more power and say, ‘You are a paid employee, you need to be neutral.’ I don’t think we will have any more issues with that [in the future].”
University Review Board
During this year’s election, candidates were told to adhere to the Ball State Student Code of Conduct, but it was not officially written into the elections code.
The changes address that problem and direct any violations of code to the University Review Board instead of the elections board.
The University Review Board also will deal with appealing fines.
SGA will vote on the changes during Wednesday’s SGA Senate.
Read More
AP: Biden's upcoming graduation speech roils Morehouse College, a center of Black politics and culture
By The Associated Press / YesterdayWhen he gives the commencement address at Morehouse College, President Joe Biden will have his most direct engagement with college students since the start of the Israel-Hamas war at a center of Black politics and culture.
Indiana Capital Chronicle: Rokita warns Indiana college officials to guard against campus antisemitism
By Indiana Capital Chronicle / 2 days agoAttorney General Todd Rokita on Wednesday issued a warning to postsecondary officials: “Hateful antisemitic acts against Jewish students will not be tolerated.”
Authors of book “Cold Case Muncie" host event at Muncie Public Library
By Ellie Marker / 3 days agoTrue crime journalists and authors Douglas Walker and Keith Roysdon co-wrote a book titled, “Cold Case Muncie.” At the Carnegie Library May 14, the authors shared comments about their findings as well as a Q&A session with the audience.
