With five days remaining to earn a chance on the ballot for April student government elections, hopeful ASSU Executive, Undergraduate Senate and Graduate Student Council candidates and special fees groups are coming into Monday morning with, in some cases, hundreds of signatures to go.
In the ASSU executive race, four slates have public petitions open. On one are Thom Scher and Stephanie Werner, both juniors; on another, graduate students Ryan Peacock and Jonathan Bakke.
Peacock is currently the financial officer of the Graduate Student Council; Bakke serves as chair of the Nominations Commission.
Rounding out the executive petitions are Katherine Heflin ‘11 and Daniel Leifer ‘10 on “The No Rain Campaign” and Billy Kemper ‘11 and Josh Meisel ’12 on “Two Dope Boys in a Caddylack.”
Hopeful executive candidates must secure 200 student signatures, including graduates and undergraduates, to get a spot on the ballot.
On Sunday night, 40 prospective Senate candidates appeared on the election Web site, including incumbents Dean Young ’11, Anton Zietsman ’12 and Michael Cruz ’12. Candidates who make it to the ballot will ultimately vie for 15 seats. Prospective Senate candidates must gather 100 signatures.
So far, seven graduate students are petitioning for spots on the Graduate Student Council.
Fourteen student groups are also hoping to garner enough signatures for spots on the ballot, including this newspaper.
Sigma Nu has a public petition open said to be for funding for Sunsplash, Moonsplash and the fraternity’s charity concert Snowchella, but on Sunday the group’s petition was ruled ineligible by election commissioner Quinn Slack ’11. He said Sigma Nu could appeal to the Constitutional Council or ask the Senate to propose a joint bylaws amendment, a lengthy process.
According to the election commission’s public announcements at press time, one group, SPOON, has reached the signature threshold for placement on the ballot.
Petitioning is set to close Friday at 4 p.m. Campaigns are scheduled for the first two weeks of spring quarter; voting begins April 8.
–Elizabeth Titus