Election Regulations

The Returning Officer has issued the following regulations to govern the upcoming Student Union Elections.
 
a) Size of JMB entries 

1. One full tabloid page (348mm up by 274mm across) for each candidate for sabbatical office
2. One quarter page (174mm up by 137mm across) for each candidate for executive or graduate executive office
3. One eighth page (87mm up by 137mm across) for each candidate for NUS delegate.

b) Expenditure Limit

1. After inflation, the expenditure limits for this year are as follows:

i. £130 per sabbatical candidate
ii. £50 per executive or graduate executive candidate or NUS delegate candidate 
iii. Slates shall be entitled to spend up to the full amount allowed to one candidate on that slate plus £10 per additional sabbatical candidate and £5 per additional candidate listed in b).ii.

 
c) Media Participation

1. The RO should allow candidates to be interviewed by the student media only if the editors concerned agree to be bound by a contract drawn up by the RO, which shall include the proviso that the interview shall not be conducted by anyone who is either a candidate or an activist for one of the candidates being interviewed.

 
d) Definitions

i. Notice in person, in writing or by fax to her/his lodge or such other address or fax number (if any) as previously agreed, by email to such email address (if any) as previously agreed, or via telephone call (including the leaving of a voicemail message) to such telephone number as previously agreed, or via SMS or pager to a previously agreed number. Such notice shall be deemed to have been given immediately upon delivery.
ii. A candidate or subject who is informed that s/he has information awaiting collection from the OUSU Offices shall be deemed to have received it 60 minutes after the RO's notification or from when they collect it from the OUSU Offices, whichever is sooner.

i. A political party; or
ii. An organization affiliated to a political party; or
iii. A partisan, political organization including all subdivisions thereof; or
iv. Holds and promulgates views of a political nature.
 
e) Construction

i. Any omission in the fulfillment of his /her obligations under these regulations or standing orders, where that omission was wholly and unavoidably caused by outside events.

ii. The exercise of any discretionary power granted under these regulations or standing orders, unless the exercise of that power was either purposely unfair to anyone involved in the election; or where it was exercised by an official in a situation where s/he did not have the authority to exercise such a power.
 
f) Activists

1.  Every candidate shall be responsible for registering with the RO any person who is active on his/her behalf 24 hours prior to the open of polls.
2. Anyone who endorses a candidate is deemed an activist. 
3. Up to, but no more than, ten people may be active on behalf of the same two candidates without this sharing of activists in itself being evidence of cross-slating.
4.  No agent or candidate may be an activist for another candidate unless on the same slate. 

g) Endorsements

1. All endorsements listed on any JMB entry, website or other election material by any current or former OUSU or Common Room official, whether or not their official position is explicitly mentioned, must be followed by statement that these endorsements are made in his/her personal capacity. 
2. All endorsements listed on any JMB entry, website or other election material by an official of any other society or institution, whether or not their official position is explicitly mentioned, must be followed by statement that these endorsements are made in his/her personal capacity, unless the candidate/slate in question provide the RO with sufficient
   documentary evidence to the contrary from the principal decision making body of that society or institution.
3. All statements that endorsements are made in an official’s personal capacity must appear in the same size, font and colour as the most prominent part of the text detailing this endorsement.

h) Facebook 

1. Candidates may create facebook groups. Members of a facebook group will not be considered activists if they do nothing more than join the facebook group. 
2.  Candidates may not send facebook messages via their facebook group.
3.  The RO must be a member and an administrator of all facebook groups. Only a candidate, his/her agents and the RO may be an administrator.
4. Candidates’ facebook groups shall be considered election material and are as such bound by all provisions in the Standing Orders, Electoral Regulations or Rules of Interpretation relating to Electoral Material. Candidates should remove any comment posted on their facebook group “wall”, which contravene such provisions. Candidates are responsible for checking the “wall” and should remove any such posts within 24 hours and shall be responsible for any comments which convene any provisions relating to election materia 24 hours after they were posted.
5.  Candidates are entitled to shut down the facebook wall application on any group advertising their candidacy and to remove any posting they do not wish to appear on the wall of such a facebook group regardless of whether it breaches any of the provisions for electoral material.
6. The “related groups” application on any candidate’s facebook group should be shut down.
7. A facebook message is deemed an email.
8.  No candidate, agent or activist may use their facebook profile picture or facebook status to advertise voting intentions.  For the avoidance of doubt a picture which does nothing more than include a photograph of a candidate shall not be deemed to advertise voting intentions.
9. No candidate or slate may purchase any form of facebook advertising.
10. Candidates may not create facebook “fan” pages
11. Campaigning through Facebook is explicitly prohibited in the following ways:

• A status indicating voting intentions, advertising a candidate or listing a candidate's website or Facebook group address
• A profile picture or posted picture with any candidate's name and/or indicating a voting preference

The following are explicitly allowed:

• A picture of a candidate(s)
• A picture of yourself with a candidates(s)

 
i) Website Domain Names

All websites must be registered. Candidates should note this does not include facebook “group” page. 
To register a website, a candidate or agent must submit to the RO to  in one email to ro@ousu.org  or to the RO or a DRO in person:
proof of purchase of domain name, such as a receipt or confirmation email including the price of purchase.
A signed statement or forwarded email from any person actively involved in creating the website that s/he/they collectively were entirely responsible for creating the website. Unless anyone actively involved in the creation of the website has been paid, in which case a receipt must be submitted and the amount deducted from the candidate’s expenditure limit, anyone actively involved in the creation of a candidate’s website must be a registered activist.
 
Candidates must ask permission for any internet expenditure. 
In order to ensure that all candidates are correctly costed for websites, it is impossible to cost domain names already purchased. Therefore to ensure fairness all domain names must be purchased specifically for the purpose of the Michaelmas Term OUSU Elections. To ensure this ruling is enforceable all domain names must contain some reference to the election or a
candidacy, such as www.voteforA.com, www.Binousuelections.com.
 
j) “How to vote” instructions
If Candidates wish to advertise how to vote on any campiagn material including facebook
groups or websites they must use the following formula. The whole formula must be used on
facebook groups or websites. For reasons of space Candidates may use only part of the formula
only on other election material, but it must be a direct quotation from the formula.
 
The formula:
 
To vote visit www.mi-vote.com. If you have not received a voter code or do not know your voter code contact ro@ousu.org. Polling takes place from Tuesday until Thursday of 6th week. If you have any problems voting contact ro@ousu.org.