Queen Mary Students’ Union
Elections Regulations
Passed by Student Council on the 8th December 2009
Contents
Introduction
0. Definitions
1. General
2. Co-options
3. Candidates Meetings
4. Nominations
5. By-elections
6. Method of elections
6.3. Voting by paper elections
6.4. Voting by online elections
7. Elections at Special General Meetings
8. Candidates publicity and Elections Campaigns
9. Count (General)
9.7. The Count – paper elections
9.8. The Count – online elections
10. Disputes
11. Complaints
12. Complaints Outcome
13. Student-staff protocol
Introduction
QMSU is a democratic organisation and so its elections are of paramount importance.
To this end the QMSU aims to:
a. Conduct all elections fairly;
b. Ensure all students at Queen Mary, University of London have the opportunity to participate fully in all aspects of the election;
c. Conduct Elections in a spirit of friendliness and co-operation.
QMSU elects students as representatives into a wide range of committees, positions and activities. These regulations detail the procedure for electing students to/as the following:
a. Trustees (including Sabbatical and Student)
b. Student Council (including Campus Boards)
c. NUS Conference
0. Definitions
0.1 The term ‘QMSU’ shall refer to Queen Mary Students’ Union, University of London.
0.2 The term ‘NUS’ shall refer to the National Union of Students.
0.3 The term 'VPEWR' refers to the Vice-President Education, Representation & Welfare sabbatical trustee of Queen Mary Students’ Union, University of London. He/she will take on the role of the Deputy Returning Officer and will, alongside the Returning Officer, have responsibility of the fair conduct of all QMSU elections as outlined in this document.
1. General Rules
1.1. All QMSU elections shall be by means of single transferable vote as specified in the NUS Constitution of the United Kingdom (Electoral Reform Society of the United Kingdom). Except in the case of tie, where there will be a direct run off.
1.2. There must be a re-open nominations option on the ballot paper. Officers of QMSU and delegates to the National Conference of the NUS shall be elected by general poll of QMSU’s full members.
1.3. Other elections shall be held at a General Meeting or Student Council.
1.4. There shall be a Returning Officer, who shall be appointed by the QMSU Trustee Board upon the recommendation of Student Council; from persons who are not Full Members of QMSU, nor employees of the QMSU, nor employees of the College seconded to the service of the QMSU. The Returning Officer shall be responsible for the fair and proper conduct of the QMSU’s elections. This shall be in accordance with the Education Act 1994.
1.5. Vice President Education, Representation and Welfare shall normally act as Deputy Returning Officer, unless stated otherwise by the Returning Officer.
1.6. Elections for Officers of QMSU and members of the QMSU’s committees shall be held in Semester B, starting with the elections for Sabbatical Trustees and Student Trustees, followed by the Student Council and other Officers of the QMSU.
1.7. NUS Conference delegates shall be elected in Semester A. All full members of QMSU (apart from Single Semester Associate Students) can run in this election.
1.8. Officers of QMSU and members of QMSU’s committees shall hold office from the 1st August, unless elected after this date, until the 31st July of the following year.
1.9. Officers-elect & QMSU committee members-elect, shall act as deputies to the existing office holders and, where possible, shall attend meetings of the committee upon which they serve when elected.
1.10. Full Members shall be eligible to take up the posts of President, Vice President Education, Representation and Welfare, Vice-President Communications, Vice-President Student Activities and Vice-President Association, only if they are current students and have been a full member of the QMSU for a full academic year and comply with the criteria outlined in the Trustee Declaration Form. They are not able to run again if they have served for two years previously.
1.11. Incumbent Sabbatical Officers wishing to stand for re-election must take annual leave from the period after the nomination period closes to the end of the voting period. Incumbent Sabbatical Trustees, Student Trustees or Student Councillors standing for re-election may not use any of the resources of their current position (such as publicity, photos, materials, stationery or email addresses or any other resources that are not accessible to other candidates).
1.12. The posts of Postgraduate Students Officer, International Students Officer, Vice President Association, Women's Representative, Disabilities Representative, Black Officer, Mature Student Officer and Lesbian Gay Bisexual Trans (LGBT) Representative shall be held by a postgraduate student, an international student, a medical/dental student, a woman, a person who self-defines as disabled and a person who self-defines as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transsexual respectively.
1.13. The Postgraduate Officer may be an undergraduate at the time of nomination with the intention of undertaking postgraduate study at Queen Mary, University of London the next year. Their election would be subject to their subsequent acceptance as a Queen Mary postgraduate student.
1.14. The Deputy Returning Officer may appoint an Assistant Returning Officer, approved by the Returning Officer.
2. Co-Options
2.1. The Campus Board or Student Council shall be entitled to co-opt a full member of QMSU into any vacancy amongst QMSU Representatives provided that the member co-opted does not have a prior disciplinary record and fulfils the requirements laid down in the Constitution and Bye-Laws for election to the post in question.
2.2. A full member co-opted as QMSU Student Councillor shall serve until such time as a bye-election or election is held for that post.
2.3. At most a co-opted QMSU Student Councillor shall not serve beyond thirteen months after the previous election for that post.
3. Candidates Meeting
3.1. A mandatory Candidates Meeting with all nominated candidates will be held after the nominations are closed and before the campaign period opens. Absence of the candidate, or the candidate’s nominated representative, without good reason, shall result in the removal of the candidate’s name from the ballot. This meeting will include relevant information on the election regulations, candidate Hustings & Question Time, campaign publicity and the campaigning parameters of the candidates.
3.2. If a candidate is not able to attend the meeting, he/she shall risk disqualification if he/she does not send a representative or if he/she does not submit written apologies and communicate the reason for his/her absence to the Deputy Retuning Officer prior to the event in question. Candidates who miss the Candidate’s Meeting will have to meet with the Deputy Returning Officer before commencing with their campaign.
3.3. The Returning Officer and/or the Deputy Returning Officer will be present at the meeting to outline and introduce QMSU’s Election Regulations.
4. Nominations
4.1. Notice of all QMSU elections (except bye-elections) shall be posted on QMSU’s Principal Notice Board and or website, giving at least 10 working days notice of the close of nominations. A further three working days notice shall elapse before the first day of polling or the General Meeting of QMSU at which the election is to take place.
4.2. Notice of QMSU elections shall specify the time and date by which nominations shall be submitted, the time, date and place of hustings, and the times, dates and places of polling.
4.3. Nominations on QMSU’s own nomination form with the signature of the nominee, the proposer and one seconder agreeing to the nomination of the candidate, must be submitted either online or to the Returning Officer or Deputy Returning Officer, by the time and date given in the notice of the election. All nominees, proposers and seconders must be full members of the QMSU.
4.4. Any full member of QMSU except current Sabbatical Trustees may nominate any full member of QMSU for an elected position.
4.5. Any full member nominating a candidate may only nominate one candidate for each role.
4.6. Any information given in confidence to the Returning Officer or the Deputy Returning Officer regarding elections must remain confidential unless the person gives permission for it to be used as part of a dispute or complaint.
4.7. No person shall assist in the conduct of a QMSU election who is a candidate, who has proposed or seconded a candidate, or who is a known member of a candidate’s campaign.
4.8. Copies of nomination forms shall be posted on QMSU’s Principal Notice Board or website by the Deputy Returning Officer, within twenty four hours of the close of nominations providing they conform to these regulations, QMSU’s Constitution and any relevant Bye-Laws
4.9. No member of QMSU may be nominated for more than one post in any election where more than one post is to be filled, unless standing for NUS delegate positions.
4.10. The Deputy Returning Officer must ensure that adequate publicity shall be given of all QMSU’s elections/nomination periods/polling dates.
4.11. QMSU’s publications shall include an 'election feature' to coincide with the opening of polling, giving factual details of the location of polling stations and the times and dates during which they will be open only.
4.12. Each candidate shall have the right to be introduced at hustings, which shall take place after the close of nominations. Each candidate, or their designated representative, may make a short speech and then may answer questions from the floor. All questions must be put to the candidates through the chair (normally the Deputy Returning Officer), and shall only be asked if they are directed at all candidates. The times for speeches and questions shall be at the discretion of the Deputy Returning Officer, provided that they are the same for all candidates.
4.13. For all cross campus elected positions, hustings will take place at the Mile End and Whitechapel Sites.
4.14. At the discretion of the deputy returning officer, hustings do not have to take place for NUS delegate elections.
4.15. A candidate may withdraw his/her candidature at any point during the elections. A withdrawal letter, written and signed by the candidate, must be given to either the Returning Officer or Deputy Returning Officer. If the candidate withdraws prior to voting, but after their name has been publicised as a candidate, the Deputy Returning Officer will produce a notice for each ballot box or relevant online voting page explaining the withdrawal.
5. By-Elections
5.1. In the event of a vacancy arising amongst the Sabbatical Trustees, Student Trustees and Student Officers a by-election shall take place.
5.2. The procedures for a by-election shall follow the same process as general elections (except the notice and voting periods).
5.3. Only five working days notice need be given for a by-election called to fill a vacancy, and polling may be on a minimum of one day. Dedicated polling stations may be made available at the discretion of the Returning Officer and the Deputy Returning Officer, for specified times during the election period. Online voting will follow the same procedures as laid out in section 6 of these regulations.
5.4. The Returning Officer and Deputy Returning Officer shall arrange for the holding of a by-election as soon as is reasonably possible following the occurrence of the vacancy.
5.5. In scheduling the by-election, they shall consider factors that may prevent those eligible standing for election or voting such as teaching practice or examinations. In some cases this may mean by-election will run at the beginning of the following academic year.
6. Method of elections
6.1. The Deputy Returning Officer in consultation with the Returning Officer will decide the method of election.
6.2. The method of election can either be a paper election or an online election.
6.3. Paper Elections
6.3.1. All ballot boxes shall be sealed or locked by the Returning Officer or the Deputy Returning Officer in the presence of two witnesses before the first day of polling and shall not be opened until the count.
6.3.2. The polling officials shall, within the times specified in the notice of elections, issue to each member of QMSU entitled to vote, a ballot paper. No ballot paper may be issued without the production of a current College enrolment card. There shall be a system for indicating that a member has voted.
6.3.3. All ballot papers must be sequentially numbered by the Deputy Returning Officer in the presence of two witnesses.
6.3.4. Polling shall take place on three consecutive days between 10am - 4pm and between 7pm -10pm. Polling between 10am - 4pm shall take place at the Mile End and Whitechapel sites.
6.3.5. Polling between 7pm - 10pm shall take place at the Mile End. Whitechapel or the Charterhouse Square Campus’, any Queen Mary Halls of Residence and may be at different sites on different days. Polling shall be at places approved by the Returning Officer, subject consultation with the Deputy Returning Officer.
6.3.6. Each candidate shall have the right to have a manifesto with a passport-sized photo posted at each polling station.
6.3.7. The manifesto shall be one side of an A4 sized sheet of paper and must be submitted to the Deputy Returning Officer by the close of nominations.
6.3.8. Each polling station shall be staffed by two people approved by the Returning Officer and the Deputy Returning Officer.
6.3.9. If a voter spoils a ballot paper and returns the paper to the polling officials, a new ballot paper shall be issued and the spoilt one marked as 'spoilt' and returned for verification at the count. These spoilt ballot papers must not be placed in the ballot box.
6.3.10. Provision must be made for visually impaired students.
6.3.11. Candidate’s names shall be listed on the ballot paper (without photos) in an order determined by lot at the candidates meeting by the Returning Officer or the Deputy Returning Officer. This will also determine the running order of speeches at hustings and the order of blanket emails.
6.4. Online Elections
6.4.1. Online elections shall be conducted by an ethically sourced organisation, which will be chosen by the Sabbatical Trustees in consultation with the Returning Officer.
6.4.2. All the information passed onto the company conducting the election will be treated under the data protection act.