Students’ Association Elections 2015

Briefing for Candidates

The role of the Returning Officers and staff

• Returning Officer – Megan McHaney, NUS Scotland

• Deputy Returning Officer – Kevin Ward, GCU Students’ Association

• Chief Executive – David Carse• Other Students’ Association staff• University staff

Election Rules• Read them – ignorance is no defence• Accept them – they have been approved

by Student Voice• Obey them – we have the power to

remove any candidate from our elections

How voting works• https://www.youtube.com/watch?

v=Ac9070OIMUg

Complaints• Should be made by the candidate or agent

in writing to Deputy Returning Officer using the Complaints Form.

• Evidence should be supplied whenever possible.

• Will be investigated and acted upon at discretion of Returning Officers

• Must be made no later than one hour after the close of polling.

The Role of the Campaign Manager

• Your campaign manager doesn’t need to be a brilliant campaigner themselves but they do need to be a good organiser

• Their job is to make sure that you and anyone else helping you knows where they are going next and are kept well stocked with flyers, posters and motivational chocolate (not to be given to voters!)

• They will also be the person that the Deputy Returning Officer will speak to if they can’t get in touch with you

Organising the Campaign• Once you have an idea of who will help you:

– Find out when they are free– How much time they can commit– What they are willing to do for the campaign

• With this information you need to:– Draw up a campaign plan– Let everyone know what they are doing and when

(they don’t need to see the whole plan!)– Make sure your Campaign Manager has a contact

number for all of your volunteers and they have the CM’s number too

Staying on Track• In order to make sure your team remains effective until

the end of the week it is important to get a few simple things right:– Make sure nobody works too hard – people are less

effective at convincing students to vote when they are tired and have been talking all day

– Look after your team – you or your campaign manager are free to supply your team with teas and coffees (this is not considered an election expense)

– Review what is happening in the campaign – try to make sure you speak with everyone during or after they have helped you out to find out what is working

– Say thank you – this one is just that simple

Staying on Track• A final cautionary note

– You are responsible for what your campaigners do in your name

– Make sure that they are either aware of the rules or know what they have to do well enough to avoid breaking any

– Even if something isn’t against the rules, if somebody campaigning for you does or says something inappropriate it will still reflect badly on you

Campaign Team• Any friends you can call upon to help out

with 2 – 4 core people.• Make sure they are aware of the election

rules – you are responsible for your campaign team’s conduct.

• Give them jobs that suit their skills.• Make sure not to ask too much of people

and thank them for their time.

Presentation• There are some things that should appear on all

manifestos: your name, the position you are standing for and when and how people can vote for you

• After that it is sensible to include: your pledges, a photograph (who was that person who spoke at my lecture?) and a short biography (course, interests, experience in the University or SA)

• Then you can include other things that you think might be useful – links to twitter, facebook, email address, phone number (think carefully about this one), more photographs, more details on your pledges (on page 2)

• Once your manifesto is complete make sure to proof read it thoroughly and get a friend or two to check it over

• Use appropriate humour if you wish as students will respond well to something which make them smile!

Social Media• All candidate Facebook, Twitter or Youtube

videos will be linked from the Students’ Association website.

• Other links such as personal web pages and other social media will also be linked.

• The rules about campaigning also apply online!

Lecture Shouts• A very effective campaign tool• Agree order of speeches if other candidates

present• Get lecturer’s permission if they are there• Keep it short and remember to say your name,

the position you are running for and the key reasons to vote for you

• They get easier the more you do them• Consider targeting multiple lectures that are

nearby

Posters• Consider the value of printing rather than

hand making posters.• Posters placed on doors, stairwells or high

places will probably be taken down by the university cleaning staff

• You should only ever move your own posters

Caledonian Court• Approach security desk before

campaigning in Caledonian Court• Be polite and respectful to all residents

while you are there• Do not flyer indiscriminately – publicity

should be delivered to residents and not left lying in buildings

• Always do as instructed by security staff

Election Expenses• We do not print your publicity.• Instead candidates will be able to claim

money back from us as outlined in the election rules.

• All candidates must submit expenses no later than one hour after polls close.

• Even things which are free must be costed and included.

Some “obvious” tips• Do not get into arguments with university staff• Keep campaigning until polling closes• Make sure your friends have voted for you• Don’t chalk walls or paths on campus or use

permanent marker on whiteboards• Don’t use explicit, derogatory or suggestive

language in campaign material• If you are in any doubt about the election rules –

ask!• Sometimes things won’t seem fair – life isn’t –

but we will try to make sure that no candidate is unduly disadvantaged at any time

Voting• All registered students can vote• Voting at via a link sent to their student

email address• Voting is conducted using preferential

voting systems

Details, Details, Details• Get your photo taken by for your official ballot photo by

Friday 27th February (you can get it taken at the end of this briefing)

• All manifestos sent to me by Wednesday 25th February will go online on Thursday (I will add later manifestos but can’t guarantee when)

• Please let me know if you wish your name to appear differently than it currently does on the website

• Return a completed Trustee Declaration Form to me before voting begins or you will not be able to stand.

Other stuff• You have a £80 budget – we will provide

£50 of this so long as you get receipts• You will be sent round some guidance

about getting your manifesto printed, planning lecture shout timetables and the support available during the campaign

• We will be filming short interviews with candidates on Tuesday afternoon which we will be promoting through our website.

Questions