Student Union Election Commission officials have once again extended the filing deadline for spring election candidates, at the urging of Student Activities Office director Carolyn Norris, to March 20 at 5 p.m. after the first two deadlines passed without any new slates filing.
The only slate meeting the original deadline of March 5 at 5 p.m. will be running under the name ‘True’ and headed by current Union vice president of Student Affairs Carl Woog. Barring a new slate submitting papers by the new deadline, Woog’s slate would receive Union executive board positions immediately.
SUEC commissioner Jeanette Jankiewicz said the final decision was made by SUEC after Norris suggested another extension be given.
‘Carolyn Norris recommended that we extend it if no other slate entered, but it was also a SUEC ruling,’ she said.
Jankiewicz said the decision was based on both the poor timing of the first extension, right before Spring Break, and a lack of advertisement for both the extension and the election itself.
Jankiewicz also said more slates are anticipated to run.
‘I don’t know of anything specific but we are expecting more slates,’ she said.
Current vice president of Safety Services Remie Ferreira, who will be running for executive vice president on the ‘True’ slate, said his slate was unaware of any other possible slates deciding to run.
‘We haven’t heard of any other slates coming about,’ he said.
Ferreira also expressed the ‘True’ slate’s frustration with the extended deadlines and the timing of the decisions to extend the deadline.
‘We all feel it’s hard not to know deadlines and not to know an open idea of where to go next,’ he said. ‘Especially after Spring Break it’s kind of difficult.’
Ferreira also said the position the slate has been put in is unenviable.
‘To be left in the dark is not advantageous,’ he said.
Ferreira said the ‘True’ slate hopes for a clean and fair election and will work with SUEC to get the election ‘going.’
While Jankiewicz said the need for other slates to run was important to the elections, this will be the final extension, as she expressed doubt in the seriousness of any slates deciding to run if the deadline were to be extended again.
‘By extending it this way we’ve almost given a five-week period for the election and if people are serious about running five weeks should be enough,’ she said.
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