The 2021 Carleton University Students’ Association (CUSA) election is in full swing. Two election debates are being held on Zoom at 6 p.m. Feb. 1 and 2 and voting will take place via email on Feb. 3 and 4.
Here’s the latest from the CUSA election.
First electoral violation issued
The first electoral violation of the 2021 election was issued against independent vice-president (finance) candidate Kareem Al-Wazir Monday morning for mass-messaging students.
Mass-messaging—using “robots, servers, apps, or any other automated services to send programmed messages to numerous students at the same time”—is prohibited under CUSA’s social media guidelines.
While the violation was found on Jan. 29, chief electoral officer Alexa Camick said she delayed releasing it because of the suspension of campaigning over the weekend.
Candidates sign letter calling for university action
CUSA councillors Emily Sowa and Jordan Vecchio sent a letter to five Carleton officials, including Carleton president Benoit-Antoine Bacon and ombudsperson Melanie Chapman, calling for the university to take action on harassment during the election.
The letter was co-signed by more than 60 CUSA candidates and campus leaders, including all the executives of CUSA, the Rideau River Residence Association and the Carleton Academic Student Government.
“The situation around slander and negativity in this campaign has come to a breaking point,” the letter reads. “We demand that there are actions taken … to ensure nobody is put in a position in which they put themselves or others at risk.”
The letter asks for the university to:
- take down all anonymous social media accounts posting slanderous election content;
- investigate all hateful posts on social media related to candidates;
- take disciplinary action on any student who is identified to have posted slanderous content;
- and extend mental health resources to anyone struggling in the election.
Campaigning, which was put on pause over the weekend to focus on the mental health of students and candidates, is expected to resume Feb.1.
Independent candidate Tiana Thomas drops out
Tiana Thomas, a third-year student in global and international studies, announced she dropped out of the race Jan. 28 in a Reddit post.
Thomas, who was running for vice-president (community engagement), cited CUSA’s “corruption and terribly unjust election system” as the main reason behind her decision to drop the race.
Thomas said the slate system and vague election documents both contribute to an unfair playing field for candidates, especially those running as independents.
“I made all my own content, ran all my own live sessions, messaged and followed students totally alone,” Thomas said, adding she had a budget of $400.
Online elections and social media campaigning can also be unfair to independent candidates who have less followers, Thomas added.
“I was forced to go up against candidates that combined had $2,400 to spend, and collectively [have] six times the followers I did and could work six times faster,” she said.
Having the election and campaigning take place entirely online, mostly through social media, has also turned “fun social escapes” into a negative environment, Thomas said.
“These elections turned social media into a battlefield for candidates, which imposes on the lives and mental health of students.”
Featured image from file.
