The process for investigating violations of the Elections Code for undergraduate student elections must be fixed.
The code exists to ensure the fundamental integrity of the election process ““ that voters have the right to vote in privacy, free from campaigning, coercion or intimidation.
Currently, the Elections Board is limited in its ability to enforce its own policies. It can only issue sanctions after receiving formal complaints, and generally, sanctions are limited to short bans on passing out fliers or campaigning.
This year, the Daily Bruin published a story that candidates from Bruins United may have violated the Elections Code by campaigning to a Bruin reporter as she voted. The next day, after a formal complaint was filed, the Elections Board ruled that those policies were in fact violated and prohibited three candidates from campaigning until voting closed.
We published the story about Bruins United because we received a tip about a potential violation. We also investigated similar claims about Students First!, and if we had found something wrong, we would have reported on it.
While the sanctions imposed on the candidates do not prove a pattern of voter coercion ““ though our investigation was sparked by allegations of ongoing violations ““ they signal that the Undergraduate Students Association Council has not done enough to protect its election process.
Students should take an active role in ensuring that their representatives are living up to standards of fairness and integrity ““ and that they themselves respect the elections process.
We suggest that before students are allowed to vote, they must read a page explaining the right to voter privacy. That page should include a link to report potential violations to the Elections Board.
At the bottom of the page, students would have to check a box certifying that they have read and understood their rights. Checking the box would also mean that students are willingly and independently casting their own vote.
The page may not stop violations, but it would be akin to the statement of academic integrity printed on every blue book. Cheaters may still try to unfairly get ahead, but their signature prevents them from arguing they had no idea what the expectations were.
With clearer policies, the Elections Board could enact stronger sanctions for violations, including disqualification of candidates who are behaving dishonestly. For example, the current policy states, “There shall be no bloc voting,” with no further explanation.
Elections Board investigations are handled on a case-by-case basis. The board should retain flexibility in deciding what constitutes a violation, but the student body needs to know what is and is not allowed. If we want to ensure that the peers we elect are serving our best interests, we must hold them accountable.
Any candidate who would resort to voter intimidation to win an election has no right to win that election.
The Daily Bruin is committed to ensuring fair and open communication with our community. We seek to hold those in power, as well as those seeking power, accountable. We are here, as journalists, to investigate allegations of wrongdoing.
We encourage all members of our community to contact us with information about any potential violations of the Elections Code, no matter what slate or individual is behind those actions.
Together, we can ensure the integrity of the election process and of our student government.
Unsigned editorials represent a majority opinion of the Daily Bruin Editorial Board.