The graduate student government voted Wednesday to reduce the number of signatures that candidates must collect to run for office from 50 to 30.
The Graduate Students Association Election Code amendment, which passed with a 12-4-0 vote, aims to increase the number of candidates running in elections and in turn improve voter turnout by making it a bigger race, said Patrick Adler, GSA election commissioner. In past years, turnout has hovered around 10 percent, and elections were typically uncontested until last year’s unusually competitive race.
“The idea is to modify the institution for a better outcome,” he said.
At the forum Wednesday evening, several GSA members expressed concerns that reducing the number of signatures needed to run would make the requirements to run for office insufficient.
Nathaniel Ross, external president of the GSA Math and Physical Sciences Council, said at the meeting that he thinks there is no evidence that a smaller threshold for signatures would make more students participate in elections.
GSA also approved a spring election calendar at its meeting and voted down a second proposed amendment to the Election Code.
The second amendment would have banned candidates from spamming, or inappropriately using group email lists, to campaign during elections.
“There is a fuzzy interpretation (of the Election Code),” Adler said. “We decided to try (to ban) unsolicited campaigning.”
Last year, a student filed a complaint against then-GSA President Nicole Robinson for sending unsolicited campaign-related emails through group email lists. Robinson was found guilty of violating the Election Code, but no sanctions were issued against her during the election.
At the time, some GSA members said they thought the code’s online communication restrictions were vague and difficult to interpret.
Forum members discussed changes to the amendment for about 40 minutes but did not pass it because of concerns about the measure’s language.
The forum also voted unanimously to pass the proposed election schedule, which establishes a campaign period lasting from April 6 to April 27. The new campaign period is shorter than last year’s, which lasted a month. Adler said he thinks no more than 15 days are necessary for campaigning.
This campaign timeline change comes in order to better accommodate the UCLA School of Law academic schedule, which operates according to different dates from other university departments. By shortening the campaign period, GSA hopes to reach the entire graduate student body in time for elections.
“The key objective of any election is to make sure that everyone covered by the election has a chance to vote,” Adler said.
Candidate applications are available starting Thursday and will be due on Monday, April 6.
Compiled by Sarah Hambro, Bruin contributor.