ASMSU might as well move its offices to Florida as the undergraduate student government is at the center of the biggest election debacle since the 2000 presidential contest.
Student Life officials Wednesday decided to cancel all universitywide elections concerning ASMSU after the organization made the request due to online voting glitches and a lack of communication. Students will be able to vote on the ASMSU representative elections, the $13 tax renewal and a $3 tax increase in a referendum next week.
The referendum item concerning a tax increase for the University Apartment Council of Residents also will be postponed, while The State News tax increase proposal will continue to go on until Saturday.
While concerns over technological glitches are valid, most of the All University Election Commission’s concerns were petty and should not have been catered to. The commission has made a mockery of the electoral process.
The commission is supposed to be an unbiased and fair tool designed to ensure an uncorrupted election. It has failed as one member decided to turn ethics on its head by publicly coming out against one of the organization’s referendum items in a letter to The State News published Wednesday.
The second problem with the committee is all five of its members represent are enrolled in James Madison College - four of which sit on the college’s student senate. So much for diversity.
While the commission’s concern about computer glitches is valid, most are petty and show the irresponsibility of its members.
The commission also contends that ballot language appearing on the universitywide ballot was changed without its approval and alleges a third proposal concerning the ASMSU Constitution was never ratified to be voted on.
In the case of one referendum question, committee leaders maintain the word “within” was changed to “by” and the phrase “continuation of the” appeared in all capital letters but was not approved to run that way.
In another proposal it claims the phrase “not inclusive to” was altered to read “does not include” and “stronger mode of leadership” was changed to “more diverse mode of leadership.”
These inconsistencies are not life-or-death matters. Maybe if the committee wasn’t rushing around at the last minute to provide Student Life with information it knew well in advance things would have worked out more to its liking. And the group could have avoided being the cause of a major election snafu.
As for legitimate concerns, both ASMSU assemblies representative elections are affected by technical problems in the online voting process designed by the Computer Center that allows some students to vote for candidates from colleges they are not enrolled in. The online ballot also bases Academic Assembly representation on college population like Student Assembly, instead of the body’s mandated two seats per college.
It is a shame the elections have turned into a bureaucratic mess. All University Election Commission members have disgraced the electoral process and the organization they represent.
