By unanimous vote, the Board of Elections dismissed allegations of campaign rule violations against junior Rick Ingram on Tuesday.
Citing insufficient evidence, board members decided not to further pursue the matter after finding that Ingram, who is rumored to be running for student body president, had good reason to send e-mails to the people documented as recipients in the message that initially alerted the board to potential violations of Student Code’s Title VI, which deals with campaign rules. Some of the evidence at the hearing was submitted anonymously, and the board voted to throw it out by a 3-2 vote.
Title VI prohibits campaign-related material, such as an e-mail, from being on the Internet until a candidate declares his candidacy with the board.
“It seemed rather silly,” said Andrew Phillips, the election board’s chairman, of the e-mail that arrived in the inbox of board member Connor Brady.
The board initially thought the e-mail, which lacked a personal salutation, was indiscriminate and therefore violated the Student Code.
At the Tuesday hearing, Ingram fielded questions regarding the e-mail.
“I had documentation of everything I had done thus far,” Ingram said in an interview.
“I didn’t think that we had violated any rules,” he added. “I knew we were in the right.”
Ingram has accused other students of violating campaign rules in the past. On Nov. 28, Ingram filed a complaint against Student Body Secretary Ian Lee, accusing him of violating Title VI by publicly stating his intent to run for student body president.
