Board Monitors SBP Campaign Violations

The focus of each candidate running for student body president up to this point has been to get their name out as much as possible -- fliers litter the halls of literally every building on campus.

But in their zeal to publicize their campaigns, several candidates have overstepped the boundaries set by the Board of Elections, the governing body which enforces the rules set forth in the student government elections laws.

Although the number of violations is down from years past, they have been occurring on nearly a daily basis, said Board of Elections Chairman Jeremy Tuchmayer.

Until now, the majority of disciplinary cases that have come before the board have concerned the placement of fliers.

But Tuchmayer said this might change as the campaigning season enters the home stretch with election day just a week away.

Although Tuchmayer would not comment on a decision he is expected to make later today concerning a possibly more severe campaign violation, the records of this and all punitive decisions handed down by the Board of Elections become public documents once they are released and are available in Suite C of the Student Union.

Tuchmayer said the only violations thus far have been minor, such as illegally posting fliers on campus, which carries a fine of 50 cents per violation.

All fines count toward the $500 that the Board of Elections limits each student body president candidate to spend on their campaign.

Most candidates said they set aside a certain portion of their $500 campaign budget for unexpected fines, not intending to spend the full $500 anyway.

Tuchmayer said the money collected from these fines is given to Student Congress' unappropriated fund.

This money is then distributed as Congress sees fit to various student organizations. Some candidates expressed concern for the rules and said they are doing the best they can to keep their campaign staff well-informed via e-mail.

But candidate Dustyn Baker said that it's inevitable that someone will slip up when you have more than 100 volunteers working on a campaign.

Baker cited an incident in which a resident assistant posted one of her fliers on her door.

This is illegal according to elections rules, and carries a fine of 50 cents.

Candidate Eric Johnson said one way he and campaign staffers make sure their fliers are not illegally posted is by periodically checking every academic building and residence hall to make sure they are not in violation.

Candidate Charlie Trakas argued that the fines aren't stiff enough, stating that the rules are clear.

He said that a candidate could knowingly ignore the regulations and post fliers all over campus, and that the fines would only add up to a small amount.

Trakas suggested that the fine should be raised to either $5 or $10, holding candidates more accountable for their actions.

"If a candidate is willing to take the risk, they should be slapped with the fine," Trakas said.

Several candidates said they were concerned that people working on other campaigns are undermining their efforts by intentionally taking the opposition's fliers and relocating them to unsanctioned spots.

Tuchmayer acknowledged that some degree of sabotage likely does occur, but he added that there is nothing the Board of Elections can do unless someone is caught in the act.

The University Editor can be reached at udesk@unc.edu.