Election Code
A printable version of this election code is available here.
Section 9: Opening And Counting Of The Ballots
Statute 9.1: Following the close of an electronic election, the Judge of Elections shall convene the Election Committee to review the results, and barring any challenges, ties or technical errors, shall proceed immediately with the Prescript of Certification.
Statute 9.2: Following the close of a voting booth election, the Judge of Elections shall request from the Dean of Students all ballots under seal, and thereby shall convene the Election Committee in Executive Session in the Senate Chamber for purposes of opening and counting the ballots.
Statute 9.3: The Elections Committee shall meet in the Senate Chamber for the counting of ballots. The Judge of Elections shall close and lock the door to the Chamber, and no person shall be admitted into the Chamber except the Elections Committee until the election results are announced.
Statute 9.4: The Prescript of Counting shall be as follows, and shall apply to both Senate and Executive Elections:
Step 1: The Judge of Elections shall open all envelopes and separate the ballots by class into different piles.
Step 2: The Judge of Elections shall appoint one Validator and three Tellers from the Election Committee.
Step 3: The Validator shall proceed to open the ballots from the sophomore class, examining each one individually. If the ballot has not been validly completed, he/she shall bring it to the attention of the Judge of Elections, who shall rule on the validity of the ballot. Should the Validator and Judge of Elections disagree, the Committee as a whole shall decide the question by majority vote. Any invalid ballot shall be discarded.
Step 4: The Validator shall say aloud the names of each candidate voted for on each ballot.
Step 5: Each Teller shall record, on separate lists, the name of each candidate receiving a vote as his/her name is read.
Step 6: At the conclusion of the reading of all ballots from one class, the Tellers shall tally their results, and shall consult with each other.
Step 7: Should the Tellers disagree in their total, the ballots shall be recounted until all Tellers agree to the result.
Step 8: When all Tellers agree to the result, they shall communicate to the Judge of Elections the number of votes each candidate received, noting the winners.
Step 9: Steps 2-9 are to be repeated for each class.
Statute 9.5: Should any ties occur between the first and fourth place finishers of any class for election to the Senate, the Elections Committee shall note the result, but shall take no further action.
Statute 9.6: Should any tie occur between the fifth place and the sixth place candidates, or between two or more candidates where one seat is in dispute in the Senate, an automatic recount shall be immediately ordered by the Judge of Elections.
A): Should the recount produce a different result, the Judge of Elections shall proceed to certify the results, but shall notify all candidates who were tied as of the first count, and shall inform each that they are entitled to an appeal of the result under this Section.
B): Should the recount fail to produce a different result, the Judge of Elections shall, at the conclusion of the counting of all ballots, delay the certification of results, and shall summon the candidates to the Senate Chamber.
C): At such time, the Judge of Elections shall announce the result to the tied candidates, and shall inform them that the election shall be decided by lottery.C) 1): Either candidate may appeal the result of the recounted vote (should the recount end in a tie). In such a case, the Judge of Elections shall initiate the Prescript of Appeal at the request of either candidate (resulting in a second recount).
C) 2): Should neither candidate request an appeal, or all appeals be exhausted without resolution, the Judge of Elections shall proceed with the remaining sub-sections.
C) 3): In the presence of the Elections Committee and the candidates, the Judge of Elections shall, on ten separate equal size note cards for each candidate, place the name of each candidate in the center, and shall place all of the note cards into a closed receptacle. The Validator shall hold the receptacle while the Judge of Elections draws one note card. The name on the note card is the winning candidate. This procedure and result cannot be appealed.
Statute 9.7: Statute 9.8 shall apply to both Senate and Executive elections.
Statute 9.8: At the conclusion of all counting and appeals processes under this Section, the Judge of Elections shall proceed to certify the results.
Statute 9.9: Upon completion of the counting and appeals process, the Judge of Elections shall draft two documents, the first revealing the vote totals for each candidate of each class or office, the second declaring the five winners of each class or Executive Office.
Statute 9.10: The Judge of Elections and each member of the Elections Committee shall sign both documents, which shall then be transmitted to the President of the Senate, the President of the Students’ Government Association, and the Dean of Students. Whenever the documents certifying the vote totals and winners are signed and transmitted to the appropriate officers, the results are official, and the winners are Senators-Elect or Officers-Elect.