Fall elections are coming soon and over 70 applicants picked up applications Tuesday Sept. 13 in the Student Government Activities Office to declare their candidacy.
The declaration of candidacy will last until Sept. 16.
Candidates must go to the Office of Student Activities to pick up an application, receive an election code stating the rules of candidacy and meet with the electoral commission.
Senate President Pro Tempore, Ebony Ivory, a 20-year-old junior business administration student from Fort Lauderdale, said the fall elections are off to a great start.
Vice President of the Student Government Association, Phillip Agnew, said he is also excited about the upcoming elections and he and president Ramon Alexander are focusing on restructuring the election codes for a more sufficient election.
“I voted last year during fall elections and I was happy with everyone that participated and
won. I plan to vote this year too,” said sophomore Ashley Adams, a 19-year-old, chemistry student from Miami.
The system penalizes candidates who break the rules of the election codes and consists of major and minor violations.
If a candidate reaches 50 points, they will automatically be disqualified.
Electoral Commissioner Sean West said the point system is designed to regulate the election and to make sure that everything is fair.
Ivory said major violations are defaming any other candidate, bribery, depriving poll sites, ballots or destroying ballots, fraudulent use of student activities, buying votes, tampering with ballots or election machine, attempting to perpetrate a fraudulent election or posting campaign material with copy right or trade mark logos.
Each of the major violations is worth 50 points and the minor violations points range from 5 to 40 points, based on severity.
“The electoral commission and elections appointment commission have been making great strives to make sure that this election is legal and runs smooth,” said Chief of Staff Kimberly Peck, a senior 21-year-old political science student from Monticello.
West, 22, a senior criminal justice student from Tallahassee, said the commission is expecting about 2,000 votes from the freshmen and graduate votes this fall.
“The main idea that I am stressing to student body and to my commission, is that we all need to get out and advertise, and get the word out to the students that it is election time,” West said.
All candidates are expected to attend a mandatory meeting on Sept. 18 at 3 p.m. in the Grand Ballroom.
If a candidate does not attend this meeting or send a representative in their place, they will not be allowed to participate in the election.
Campaigning officially begins on Sept. 21 and ends Sept. 27.
The positions available for election candidates are eight freshmen senator positions, three graduate senator positions, one freshman attendant position, one graduate attendant position and one freshman class president and vice president positions.
There are also two open senior senator positions available that do not require an election. For those openings, applicants can pick up applications in the senate office in SGA.
“Being that I am a freshman, this election gives me a chance to get to know and see more people around campus so that I can learn how things work,” said Stacey Russell, an 18-year-old business administration student from Prince George County, MD.
Election day is set for Tuesday, Sept. 27. and on Sept. 29 the voting will be held for the run-off. Run-offs occur when the top candidates in each position are left in the election and the winning vote is considered half the votes plus one additional vote.
There will be postings of voting information around campus.
“Overall students should stay positive, encouraged and have fun,” Phillip Agnew, a 20-year-old business administration student from Chicago, said.
Contact Teyoshe Crenshaw at famuannews@hotmail.com