The following rules govern the election of Executive Officer’s team at Birmingham City University Students’ Union (BCUSU) and should be considered in conjunction with existing Byelaw’s governing the organisation.
Any breach of the Elections Rules could result in disciplinary action being taken against you by the Deputy Returning Officer (DRO).
The DRO reserves the right to distribute sanctions that are deemed to be fair and equivalent to any breach of the Elections Rules.
These rules refer in part to Bye Law 11, which can be found online at bcusu.com. They act as a supplement to standard regulations of both BCU and BCUSU which are agreed to on enrolment.
By signing below, you acknowledge that you have read and understand the above rules and that you agree to abide by them.
1. Oversight and Complaints
1.1 BCUSU will ensure all student members of the Union can participate fully in all aspects of the election.
1.2 BCUSU will conduct Elections in a spirit of friendliness and cooperation.
1.3 The Union’s Returning Officer (RO) is responsible for the overall fairness of the Elections process. Our elections are currently returned by NUS.
1.4 The DRO is supported in their duties by an elections panel, comprised of Union staff from a mixture of disciplines and backgrounds.
1.5 Any complaints about the elections process, or the conduct of candidates and their supporters, should be made via the appropriate form on the BCUSU Elections Hub website.
1.6 Complaints not submitted through this webform will not be considered.
1.7 The Deputy Returning Officer will make a ruling on the matter within one working day of receipt of the complaint, following a discussion with the Union’s elections panel.
1.8 We may take any of the following disciplinary action, including but not limited to:
- Verbal warning
- Written warning
- Ban on campaigning for a designated length of time, or in a specific location.
- Disqualification
2. Eligibility to Stand
2.1 All candidates wishing to stand for a position should be enrolled students at Birmingham City University at the time they stand
2.2 All candidates must also agree to the Elections Rules by electronically signing a copy of this document
2.3 Candidates must provide a manifesto, to be published by the Union, ahead of the advertised cut-off date or their nomination will be withdrawn.
2.4 No candidate is eligible to stand for more than one position in any given election.
2.5 All candidates must attend a training session, or meet with the DRO, following the close of nominations and before the voting period begins.
2.6 All candidates are required to attend Question Time event(s) hosted by BCUSU as prescribed in their training session.
3. Conduct
3.1 Campaigning may only begin after candidates have attended a training session and agreed to the Elections Rules, and the campaigning period has opened.
3.2 Candidates may recruit a campaign team to support them through the elections process. All members of a campaign team must be current, enrolled BCU students.
3.3 Candidates must take reasonable steps to ensure that their team’s actions always comply with the campaign rules and must be able to demonstrate this in the event of a complaint against them.
3.4 Candidates and their supporters may only use mailing lists where lawful to do so and where use of that list complies with GDPR legislation.
3.5 Candidates are not allowed to run in a slate. A slate is defined as a group of candidates joining together whether via resources, campaign material or encouraging voters to vote for other candidates.
3.6 Candidates may criticise another candidate’s campaign but must never be personal. Candidates and their supporters must not:
- Reference another candidate’s personal traits or character
- Misrepresent another candidate’s religious, political, or other views.
- Intimidate any participant in the election.
- Deface any campaign material, or sabotage the campaign, of another candidate.
- Make any attempt to influence the impartiality of the DRO or Union staff.
- Permanently damage any Students’ Union or University area or property.
3.7 Candidates and their supporters must not communicate or interfere with voters in any way once they have begun to complete their ballot.
3.8 Candidates and their campaign teams should take reasonable steps to ensure the autonomy of the voter to cast their vote privately.
3.9 Candidates and their supporters should avoid behaviour that could be considered intimidation or harassment of an individual to vote in a particular way.
3.10 Candidates and their campaign teams should not use their own electronic devices to enable candidates to cast their vote.
4. Budget and Promotional Material
4.1 An equal amount of budget will be allocated to all candidates by the Elections Panel.
4.2 No candidate may spend more on their campaign than the budget allows.
4.3 Campaign budgets should not be shared between candidates.
4.4 Candidates must not use resources that are not readily available to all candidates.
4.5 If candidates are in doubt that any activity might be construed as creating an unfair advantage, they should seek advice from the Activities and Representation Team before proceeding.
4.6 Items which are readily available to all campaigners can be used for free and will be listed for candidates to refer to.
4.7 Any items other than those listed will have a charge associated with them that will be deducted from candidate’s campaign budget.
4.8 Items that campaigners already own can be valued using a minimum price list.
4.9 Any item a candidate wishes to use should be submitted, in writing, to the DRO before use.
4.10 The DRO will value items which are submitted, and not already on this list, within one working day of the request for an evaluation.
4.11 The logos of Birmingham City University and Birmingham City University Students’ Union can be used to show engagement during your time at BCU, including (but not limited to) items of clothing or accessories related to your role as a School Rep, or as part of a society event.
4.12 The logos of Birmingham City University and Birmingham City University Students’ Union should not be used by candidates in any promotional material to indicate sponsorship or support. This could include adding the logos to your promotional material.
4.13 Decisions about whether use of a logo is incidental (as described in 4.11) or intentional (as described in 4.12) will be made by the DRO after consultation with the elections panel.
4.14 Any use deemed as intentional will result in the item(s) displaying the logo being disallowed.
4.15 Logos of Student Groups affiliated to BCUSU may be used by candidates in promotional materials with permission in writing from the President of that society.
4.16 The DRO, in conjunction with the elections panel, reserve the right to check candidates’ promotional material either prior to, or after circulation. Any material contravening this regulation will be removed and the candidate may be subject to disciplinary action, outlined in 1.7 above.