2008 Woodie Awards
ASU Election Committee Members Quit
Election Committee reacts to Administrator's "interference" in decision to disqualify candidates.
Tammy Funicello
Issue date: 5/18/05 Section: News
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Election Committee Chair Ron Cabrera disagrees with the legality of the administration's interference with the student election, saying that Rodriguez is in violation of the Election Code.
"I disagreed with [the Election Committee's] decision, [but] at the same time I'm concerned about the advisor overruling it," said Chief Justice Igor Kagan. "While I don't agree with the [Committee's] decision, it was in the rules. There was nothing illegal about it."
The Election Committee unanimously appointed Adam Park as the ASU president last week after disqualifying the top two vote-getters in the April 19 and 20 election, Theresa Chavez and Nelli Martirosyan, for campaign violations. Martirosyan (who received 322 votes) and Chavez (who received 171), have said they don't want a second election.
Last week, the Election Committee found both Martirosyan and Chavez guilty of violating the election code. Martirosyan was found guilty of having a campaign helper who crossed the no-campaigning zone. There is no campaigning within 50 feet of the voting booths. Chavez was found guilty of having an excessive number of campaign posters. The committee considered both disqualifiable offenses.
Rodriguez fears that voters were swayed in the first election, saying that she hopes that having a second election, candidates will pay more attention to the rules so that votes are not illegally obtained.
"I talked to other schools and no one had ever been disqualified for violations like that," said Rodriguez. "The next best thing to do is have a new election in an environment where no one can be swayed."
