MSA approves drastic changes to elections

Campaigns can now begin on the first day of classes.

By Campbell Massie

Published Sept. 19, 2008

The Missouri Students Association Senate approved major changes to the way its presidential elections operate.

On Wednesday, the Senate passed both a Bill of Rights for voters and candidates and the Board of Elections Commissioners Handbook. It also confirmed the appointments of both Department of Student Communication Director Porscha Kirkwood and Student Fee Review Committee Chairwoman Gwen Daniels. Daniels is a columnist for The Maneater.

The proposed BEC Handbook came back to committees as a changed document after the committee met with Student Legal Services Coordinator Steve Concannon on Monday. Some existing portions were simply condensed while other portions were completely rewritten.

Members of the BEC met with Concannon for more than an hour, when he gave impressions and insight about possible legal concerns that members wanted to incorporate, especially regarding policies that contradicted the First Amendment.

"It became apparent to the committee that the changes would be difficult to implement within the structure, so they rewrote the revisions into the handbook from ground up," BEC Chairman Justin Mohn said. Mohn is a former member of The Maneater staff.

One change to the handbook and bylaws is a change to allow campaigning the first day of classes of the semester of the election. Formerly, slates could not start campaigning until 45 days prior to the election. This change will nearly double the campaign season and allow slates to start campaigning before officially registering their candidacy with the BEC.

The most debated issue in the handbook is the removal of the $1,000 spending cap, giving candidates free reign to receive and spend money. Federal appeals courts have issued conflicting opinions about whether public universities can limit campaign spending in student government elections.

Wednesday night, several senators and attendees raised concerns about the involvement of third parties in the election. BEC members answered these concerns by pointing out that third parties could easily help a candidate, even with a spending cap, by making in-kind donations or donating under the table. The new changes to the handbook make donations and expenditures a matter of public record and campaign limits just drive contributors underground, Mohn said.

"Everyone will know about it, and there is no reason to hide it," BEC Vice Chairman Ryan Senciboy said.

The pre-approval of campaign materials was taken out of the handbook in favor of registering all campaign materials with the BEC.

"Eliminating the pre-approval of campaign materials is a milestone for free political speech on campus," MSA Senate Speaker Jonathan Mays said. "For everything else, I hope they thought it through."

According to MSA bylaws, the BEC Handbook must be approved 50 days prior to the election. That deadline is Monday. Senators raised concerns about rushing into certain changes. The possibility of cutting out portions of the handbook to be reworked later for future elections was raised, rather than becoming the "guinea pigs" to the new policies.

The BEC preferred to rework the handbook and err on the side of a free election rather than wait and go into the upcoming election with a handbook that has failed in the past, Mohn said.

"We felt that agreeing with the Constitution was something important for this election," Mohn said.

The handbook was passed by a margin of 18-4 with four abstentions.