Talia Torbica / Contributing Writer
Every spring, Student Government Association holds elections, encouraging students to compete for specific positions which would allow them to take part in the decision-making processes that affect the FIU community.
This year, SGC-MMC elections closed February 19, at 5 p.m. In order to be considered for a position, each candidate has to have good academic and conduct standing, and had to attend one of the mandatory sessions.
Candidates for the President, Vice President, and Senate positions began campaigning on Monday, Feb. 29. According to the Election Code, Presidential and Vice Presidential candidates must at least be a sophomore, have attended FIU for a year and have held an SGA position for two semesters.
“There was a large amount of students that applied for SGA positions this year,” said the Elections commissioner, Luis Callejas in a Senate meeting.
SGC-BBC will be announcing their candidates later this week once their applicants are confirmed to fit SGA guidelines.
The full list of candidates for SGC-MMC can be viewed on the SGA website.
The two political parties running this season are FIYOU and Access FIU. Among those running for positions this season are Alian Collazo and Michelle Juarez, representing FIYOU. Collazo is running for President of SGC-MMC and his running mate, Juarez, is running for Vice President.
Representing Access FIU, Jose Sirven, president of the Residence Hall Association, will be running for president this year. His running mate is Devondra Shaw.
Access FIU is a new political party, having been established this semester.
Candidates and political parties are guided by the SGA Election Code which provides strict campaigning rules, and can be found on the SGA official website.
Chantae Brown, a junior majoring in Psychology and Criminal Justice said “being able to represent the College of Arts and Sciences as a Senator is a great privilege [because] you get to put forth the needs and values of the students, and implement legislation and programs that build student life and opportunity.”
According to the Elections Code, all material used in campaigning, such as fliers, social media posts and solicitations cannot advertise alcohol and its consumption, humiliate other candidates, parties or organizations, or depict or express discriminatory messages.
The distribution of promotional items cannot hinder the passage of students, vehicles and bicycles.
Additionally, “[it] must not interfere with or obstruct the orderly processes of the University or its academic mission.”
Solicitation is residence halls and classrooms is not allowed, and can result in disqualification.
If a candidate or a party violates the Elections Code, the governing documents of the FIU-SGC, the FIU Student Code of Conduct or University policy they will be penalized by the Elections Board. In the case that a “substantive error is found in a candidate’s qualifications,” with a majority vote, the Elections Board can pronounce the candidate ineligible for running.
Students can vote for their preferred candidates by presenting their FIU OneCard and using their Panther ID to access the electronic ballot located online.
Each student will be allowed to vote for school or college senator candidates only if they are enrolled in that school or college. Additionally, only housing students are eligible to vote for Housing Senators.
Voting will take place on April 5 and April 6 starting at 9 a.m. and ending at 7 p.m., and the winners will be announced on April 7 in the GC Pit at noon.
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