The Rideau River Residence Association (RRRA) is investigating alleged electoral code violations brought against the Forward slate — the winner of last week’s election.
According to a statement from the organization, the RRRA electoral board is investigating “alleged violations of the electoral code.” However, the statement does not list the specific allegations.
With 920 ballots cast in the election, the Forward slate led with 496 votes, followed by the Action slate with 266. The Elevate slate came in third with 153 votes.
Following the election, there is a 48-hour period during which alleged electoral code violations can be submitted. Yusuf said that he received “numerous violations.”
Forward, led by presidential candidate and current vice-president (programming) Jaden Slawter, allegedly accepted the assistance of Jacob Howell, the current vice-president (finance) of the Carleton University Student Association (CUSA), and former CUSA executive Sissi De Flaviis.
Howell, who lives off-campus, is prohibited from volunteering in RRRA elections by section 6.10 (f) of the electoral code.
Action slate presidential candidate Angelica Zagorski provided evidence to the Charlatan of an alleged electoral code violation in a recording of Slawter and several CUSA executives.
The recording reveals that Slawter, as a current member of the RRRA executive, had access to the residence list containing the confidential information of all residence students, giving the Forward slate an advantage in the election.
In the recording of Slawter’s call with CUSA executives, Howell is heard stating, “I could run a code from my computer with your accounts,” referring to the residence list. Slawter responded, “ok.”
Zagorski said she believes the action violates section 4.5 of the electoral code, which stipulates that any RRRA member seeking nomination must “take a temporary leave of absence.” The use of a residence list is not directly listed as a violation.
Slawter said he is currently unaware of what the specific allegations against his slate are, but said he would be happy to discuss once the details are made public.
“What I can assure you is that we ran a fair and honest campaign, and we are proud of our accomplishments,” he said in a written statement.
RRRA has a history of election disqualifications and do-overs. In 2012, a slate was found to be in possession of the residence list—as Slawter allegedly is—and was declared the loser in a previously-tied election.
In 2016, a slate was disqualified for six violations, including the assistance of off-campus volunteer and then-CUSA president Fahd Alhattab—a similar allegation to what the Forward slate faces.
And in each of the 2011, 2013 and 2017 elections, at least one slate was disqualified—including the same slate in two consecutive elections in 2013.
Zagorski alleged that Forward violated the electoral code two additional times with the running of Instagram advertisements on the first day of voting and the posting of student endorsement videos from off-campus volunteers.
Chief electoral officer Qusai Yusuf would not comment on the ongoing investigation.
“There were violations made, and we can’t provide any further details of those violations,” Yusuf said.
The investigation into the violations will begin on Monday, July 6, after the Canada Day holiday. Yusuf said he hopes to conclude the investigation by the end of next week at the latest.
If the allegations prove to be true, the Forward slate could be disqualified and the second-place Action slate could win the election. The investigation could also show that the allegations were “unnecessary and unreasonable,” Yusuf said, and Forward could maintain their victory.
RRRA’s constitutional board—originally composed of Yusuf and vice-president (administration) Lina Ceron, with the consultation of ombuds office liaison representative Jeremy Brzozowski—will be investigating the alleged violations.
However, because Ceron worked with Slawter this year on the RRRA executive team, she removed herself from the electoral board because of her conflict of interest.
Ceron didn’t remove herself from the board before or during the election because her conflict of interest wasn’t as significant as it is now, Yusuf said.
“In this circumstance, there’s more than just Jaden [Slawter] involved that shows a conflict of interest,” Yusuf said. “There’s other parties involved that also show a conflict of interest [with Ceron].”
De Flaviis is a member of the same sorority as Ceron. De Flaviis and Howell both served as RRRA executives in the 2018-19 year, although their terms did not overlap with Ceron or Slawter.
Yusuf, who sat as the RRRA council chair, maintained that he has no conflict of interest despite also working with Slawter in the past.
“My relationship with Jaden was strictly professional,” Yusuf said. He added that he was hired by, and worked primarily with, Ceron.
“Jaden winning, Jaden losing plays no stake with me … I’m not out for a specific job or gunning for council chair again or anything like that,” he said. “It’s just that I want to run a professional and proper election.”
In addition to Yusuf, Carleton University ombudsperson Melanie Chapman and a student residence representative will also sit on the constitutional board and investigate the alleged violations. Ombuds office liaison representative Brzozowski will relinquish his voting rights on the board.
“I am calling the institution to action. It is due time for change,” Zagorski wrote in a Charlatan op-ed.
“It is time for elections to be more accessible and for students to be better informed on how they can get involved.”
Featured image from file.
