Ready, set, run!
Elections committee attempts to attract more candidates
IT’S THAT TIME of year again—the time when students pick up syllabi, textbooks, and nomination forms for Student Federation of the University of Ottawa (SFUO) elected positions. With election season right around the corner, deadlines are nearing for students thinking about running for next year’s SFUO executive, Board of Administration (BOA), or U of O Senate.
“The biggest challenge is to get the word out—[for students]to know that the election is going on and to vote,” said Chief Electoral Officer Julien de Bellefeuille, who is tasked with the responsibility of ensuring the elections run smoothly.
So far, the only publicity that the elections have been getting is in the controversial posters set up around campus. Last year, these posters read “I Will Run,” a statement meant to encourage students to take action. This year, posters around campus read “Be Famous.” Addressing the accusation that these posters could be seen to make a mockery out of student politics, Bellefeuille explained that the line isn’t representative of the entire campaign.
“It’s not the campaign slogan per se, but it is the concept we went with for the first poster,” explained Bellefeuille. “It accomplished its goal in the sense that everyone [is] talking about it, and it leaves no one indifferent. We’re hearing a lot of negative feedback from people saying that [running for a position] shouldn’t be about being famous; it should be about the issues, and about getting involved.
“The fact that people are saying that shows to me that we’ve reached our goal, because we’re getting people who feel that way to actually get involved. It’s really a teaser for the [next] poster.”
There are numerous year-long positions available on campus, including as representatives for each faculty that sit on the BOA. These student members are responsible for the management of the SFUO. The number of positions available to each faculty isn’t secured as of yet, as the elections committee must first confirm the number of students in each faculty in order to ensure proportional representation.
“There are six positions on the executive board: the president and five vice-presidents,” explained Bellefeuille. “There [are] 25 positions on the [BOA], elected proportionally per faculty. We can’t release the number of seats per faculty yet, because we’re waiting to get the latest list from the university.”
It is not determined at this point whether or not online voting, which was introduced last year, will be reinstated as a method of voting.
“We’re looking in the direction [of online voting]. It showed its value in increasing the voter turnout last year,” said Bellefeuille. “We looked at about 27 per cent [voter turnout with online voting] and in past paper ballot elections it was 18 per cent and lower.”
Nomination forms can be downloaded from the SFUO website. Students running for executive positions, the BOA, and the U of O Senate have until Jan. 18 at 5 p.m. to submit their nomination forms. Those who wish to take part in the “Yes” and “No” sides of referendum campaigns have until 5 p.m. on Jan 25 to submit their forms.
For more information on the upcoming elections, visit sfuo.ca/otherelections/en/index.php.
