University of Colorado

University of Colorado Student Union Legislative Council

 

January 28, 2010                                                                    72LCB#7 – Revision to Candidate Ticket System

                                                                                                     

 

Sponsored by:                                     Daniel Ramos                          Tri-Executive

                                                                       Blaine Pellicore                        Legislative Council President

                                                                       Alexander Schnell                    Election Commissioner

                                                                       Christine Thai                          Tri-Executive

                                                                       Danielle Warly             Assistant Election Commissioner                                                        

 

Authored by:                                                   Daniel Ramos                          Tri-Executive

                                                                       Alexander Schnell                    Election Commissioner

                                                                       Blaine Pellicore                        Legislative Council President

 

Revision to Candidate Ticket System

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Bill History

 

As the UCSU Election Code stands, there is no direct mention of a formal ticket system for candidates, and thus no rules that would govern such a system. The term ticket does not appear anywhere in the UCSU Election Code. In order to formalize and regulate this de facto system of candidate tickets, the Election Code needs to be revised. Traditionally, a ticket has been a group of students who choose to run together on a single platform. This practice gives a two-fold advantage. First, the code allows the candidates on the ticket to collect petition signatures as one single entity. Therefore, each individual candidate on the ticket does not have to get all the required signatures to run, and the entire ticket can combine their signatures to reach the total requirement. Secondly, the candidates on these tickets receive a campaigning advantage through name recognition of their accompanying platform. While the practice of tickets has significant advantages, it needs to be structured in a way that encourages fair competition among candidates. Therefore, it is necessary to place a restriction on the number of candidates who can be placed on one ticket in an Executive election. By limiting the number of candidates to three on an executive ticket, competition will be increased in elections. Revising the Election Code to incorporate and regulate an official ticket system will further help legitimize the student government’s actions by creating the best possible representation for the student body.

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Bill Summary

 

This bill will create a definition in § 101(b) as to what constitutes a ticket. This bill will also amend § 402(b) of the UCSU Election Code to stipulate that candidates may run on tickets, however they must adhere to the definition of a ticket set forth in § 101(b).

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THEREFORE BE IT ENACTED by the Legislative Council of the University of Colorado Student Union, THAT,

Section 1: SECTION 101(b) (3) of the UCSU Election Code shall read: Ticket: A ticket consists of multiple                        candidates who petition for candidacy and run a campaign under the same platform and name.                        Executive(s) tickets may contain up to three candidates.

 

Section 2: SECTION 101(b) (3) (a) of the UCSU Election Code shall read: Executive(s) tickets may contain                       up to three candidates.

 

Section 3: SECTION 402(b) (4) of the UCSU Election Code shall read: Multiple applicants may appear on                         the same petition, and be known as a ticket, as long as that petition indicates the name of each                        applicant, the office sought by each applicant, and the political party affiliation, if declared, of              each applicant. If multiple applicants appear on a petition, each signature         shall be counted as                   though independently provided for each individual applicant.

 

Section 4: SECTION 402(b) (5) of the UCSU Election Code shall read: All eligible candidates who form a              ticket are bound by the definition of a ticket set forth in § 101(b) (3) of the UCSU Election              Code.

 

Section 5: SECTION  402(b) of the UCSU Election Code shall read: A Representative at Large ticket shall

consist of a maximum of one minus the total number of open seats.

 

Section 6:  After one year of enactment, Section 5 of this bill will expire unless agreed upon by a supermajority of the Legislative Council to enact indefinitely.

 

Section 7: This bill shall take effect upon passage by the Legislative Council and upon either obtaining the signatures of two Tri-Executives or the lapse of six days without action by the Tri-Executives.

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Vote Count:

1/28/10                                                           Passed on 1st reading                                               Acclamation

2/4/10                                     Amended Section 5 and added Section 6                                        9-7-1

2/4/10                                                             Failed on 2nd reading                                    9-6-2

                                               (2/3 majority needed to amend Election Code)

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Blaine Pellicore                                                                                   Thomas Higginbotham

Legislative Council President                                                               Tri-Executive

 

 

 

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Daniel Ramos                                                                                     Christine Thai

Tri-Executive                                                                                      Tri-Executive