SU Elections

douglashyde

Just a question:

To run for an SU exec position:

Do you need to be a registered student within DCU?

Have finished your degree in DCU?

Have passed your degree in DCU?

For example, can I drop out in 2nd year and decide to run for SU president.

public_enemy

You have to be a current student in DCU to run for election.

You don't need to graduate, so if you like, you could run for election at the end of first year.

Elections take place before the end of the year (usually week 9), so you haven't technically failed or dropped out at that stage. As long as you're still registered as a student you can run.

Diarmsquid

Sooo....

Anyone know of anybody running this year?
Out with their names!

public_enemy

Speculation is likely to get your post deleted around these parts. And in that spirit, here are some names I've heard people a speculatin' about:

David Doyle
Michael McHugh
Aisling Fitzgerald
Robert O'Reilly

Garseys

Diarmsquid, I'm suprised you haven't heard anything yet.:pac:

I'm more interested this year in the proposed Constitution changes.

(and I'm sure the USI issue will raise it's head again)

Cy_Revenant

It's only an issue because filthy liberals refuse to let it drop. ¬_¬

Green Hand Guy

I don't think it even was an issue before certain College View people with a vested interest decided to push for it. Funny how you don't see any of them run for Union positions.

Urizen

I call shenanigans on all speculation. You'll find out in a week anyway.

Diarmsquid

Green Hand Guy wrote: »

I don't think it even was an issue before certain College View people with a vested interest decided to push for it. Funny how you don't see any of them run for Union positions.

Maybe this year will be different...

robby^5

I am campaigning on an original platform:

"Working to achieve better."

Cid-Highwind

Diarmsquid wrote: »

Maybe this year will be different...

Nah, if they were the SU they couldn't whinge about it.

Matthewthebig

robby^5 wrote: »

I am campaigning on an original platform:

"Working to achieve better.

Robby says no fat chicks.

goodgodholmes

Any more Pres rumours?

How's about Education/Welfare and Campaigns/Information?

manlad

maybe this year we will get a student union that know something about being a student. One can only hope

Cy_Revenant

manlad wrote: »

maybe this year we will get a student union that know something about being a student. One can only hope

That's a bit of a silly thing to say. All the SU Presidents have been students, they know all about being one.

public_enemy

manlad wrote: »

maybe this year we will get a student union that know something about being a student. One can only hope

inb4 "Style Soc/Drama Soc don't know how to run the SU".

phasers

I'll vote for anyone who uses the slogan "No fat chicks"

manlad

Cy_Revenant wrote: »

That's a bit of a silly thing to say. All the SU Presidents have been students, they know all about being one.

excuse my bluntness but its not hard to see that the trend for being elected to the student union is that of a particular society i.e drama soc, juggling, dance etc Don'tget me wrong nothing wrong with these societies but I just think that alot the things organised for students were more aimed toward a caertain group and not a general student body.

Another reason was the disappointing rag week. If nobody had known any different it lukd like a normal week, no music being pumped around campus, not many promotion and free stuff

The rag ball as already seen in the college view was a huge failure but this was down to the student union by not getting suitable acts that were worth the 25 euro. And also heard alot of complaints from people that paid into the ball at the door later in the evening after most acts had performed and still being charged 25 euro. The person that charged this is an su member and they should have known better.

I know it hard work planning and organising but these people are getting well paid to do so and I just dont think the worked as hard as they could have. the bar has been a success but that about it.

Probably gonna have alot of ppl that disagree with me here (all the usual suspects) but I just wanted to vent my opinion.

monument

manlad wrote: »

excuse my bluntness but its not hard to see that the trend for being elected to the student union is that of a particular society i.e drama soc, juggling, dance etc

A trend of people getting elected? What trend?

Don'tget me wrong nothing wrong with these societies but I just think that alot the things organised for students were more aimed toward a caertain group and not a general student body.

What certain group?

As you're saying you are being blunt, you should not mind me saying: For somebody being blunt you are not being very clear at all.

Another reason was the disappointing rag week. If nobody had known any different it lukd like a normal week, no music being pumped around campus, not many promotion and free stuff

The rag ball as already seen in the college view was a huge failure but this was down to the student union by not getting suitable acts that were worth the 25 euro. And also heard alot of complaints from people that paid into the ball at the door later in the evening after most acts had performed and still being charged 25 euro. The person that charged this is an su member and they should have known better.

I know it hard work planning and organising but these people are getting well paid to do so and I just dont think the worked as hard as they could have. the bar has been a success but that about it.

Let's see, you're pitting one week of a disappointment vs a success which has being year-long?

Probably gonna have alot of ppl that disagree with me here (all the usual suspects) but I just wanted to vent my opinion.

I've been highly critical of the union in the past, am I still going to be included in all the usual suspects?

Green Hand Guy

manlad wrote: »

excuse my bluntness but its not hard to see that the trend for being elected to the student union is that of a particular society i.e drama soc, juggling, dance etc

Where can I join this magical drama-juggling-dance society? Sounds like a great laugh!

To be serious though, I don't think that having one president who was involved in drama constitutes a trend. Last year we had Niall who as far as I know was only involved in Fianna Fail.

Also, I don't think this years education and welfare officer or campaigns and information officer are involved in any of the societies you listed.

If you mean that people who get involved in societies in general are more likely to be elected, then that's probably true, because they're the people with most experience in organising campus events.

Daysha

manlad wrote: »

The rag ball as already seen in the college view was a huge failure but this was down to the student union by not getting suitable acts that were worth the 25 euro. And also heard alot of complaints from people that paid into the ball at the door later in the evening after most acts had performed and still being charged 25 euro. The person that charged this is an su member and they should have known better.

Tbf, for the kind of bands they had playing, €25 was actually fairly good value. The only reason it wasn't close to selling out was because DCU students are too accustomed to their €10-15 balls that only begin after an evening of pre-drinking somewhere else. And for people that still wanted to do that and only turn up at 9-10pm, then 25 quid was definitely too much.

I suppose it was good to see them try something different, but nearly everyone I've talked to said last years rag ball in the Helix was far better.

andyman

Can see Willie Coyne running for one of the three big positions to be honest. Hope he does too, been in college for years that lad and has plenty of SU experience.

thusspakeblixa

Daysha wrote: »

Tbf, for the kind of bands they had playing, €25 was actually fairly good value.

Good value, unless you had epilepsy.
Couldn't go into any of the bands (AGAIN) and noone thought to put any warnings on tickets/doors or anything.
2 years in DCU now and I still can't get an answer when I ask "will there be strobe lighting" at an event.
Bit of a joke, but I'm used to this at this stage.
So yeah, is anyone decent going for equality officer?!

Urizen

Manlad, people involved in societies and union tend to overlap. This is largely because 90% of extracurricular involvement in DCU largely depends on societies. People in societies seem to get elected more because people in societies tend to care more about students. No big conspiracy.

Judging by the people I know are running, there will be no shortage of people who 'know what it's like to be a student'. All the candidates I know are caring, responsible, experienced people doing this for the students' benefit. What more are you asking?

And finally, the 'usual suspects' comment because, again, they give a damn and don't allow wild accusations to run rampant without pointing out the inconsistencies.

public_enemy

thusspakeblixa wrote: »

So yeah, is anyone decent going for equality officer?!

I've heard me some speculation that there are plans afoot to drop that position altogether.

Urizen

Any changes made to the constitution must be voted on this year, but will not come into effect until the 2011/2012 academic year. All elections will be as normal this time around.

douglashyde

Whats the word on the block? who's running?

OrionsBelt

douglashyde wrote: »

Whats the word on the block? who's running?

Nominations will be annonced at 6.00pm in the C&S office. guess all questions will be answered then. lets hope all the spots have some competition for them at least.

TheChrisD

Hmmm, no-one put forward for Engineering and Computing?

I wonder who's going to go for it now?

monument

Everybody should have gotten this but I know how well some people look at their email...

Dear Students,

Please note that the position of Faculty Convenor for Engineering and Computing has no nominees at this time, nominations are open for said position. The following is a list of successful nominees for this year's Executive Elections:


Sabbatical Positions

President: Ciarán Hughes, Megan O'Riordan, David Doyle

Deputy President for Education and Welfare: LeeAnne Heneghan, John Devine, Cillian Byrne,

Vice President for Campaigns and Information: Maeve McQuillan, Colin Oliver,


Faculty Convenors:

Humanities & Social Sciences: Adam Douglas, Dara McGann, Jackie Fox

Science & Health: Alan Armstrong, Leo Prymakov, Maria Corcoran,

Business: Mark Doyle, Ian McGlynn,


Other Positions:

Clubs & Socs Officer: Brian McDonald,

Equality Officer: Khaula Bhuttet


Attached are the rules and regulations regarding campaigning as well as the layout for the overall elections. Please note that some amendments have been made regarding rules related to Mass E-Mails.

Regards,

Roibeárd Ó Conchúir,
An Ceann Comhairimh,
Aontas na Mac Léinn

And the attachment:

Election Procedures and Campaigning Information


Finances:

- Candidates will be given a Campaign Spending limit of €320.

- All spending for Campaign Materials (e.g. t-shirts, posters, fliers, sweets, drinks, confectionary) must be recorded and receipts must be presented to the Treasurer Megan Kelly, as such.

- Candidates will be required to submit full accounts to the treasurer by 5pm, Thursday 07/04/2010 (an hour after polling closes).



Campaigning:

- All physical paraphernalia related to the promotion of a candidate will be subject to review by the Treasurer to ensure that all candidates and members of campaign teams do not exceed the given budget; in the interest of fairness for all candidates. This also covers donations of campaign materials from external sources or members of a candidates campaign team. In an extremely suspicious case, the Electoral Committee may decide to give further investigation to how candidates purchased campaign materials.

- Using mass e-mails as a method of campaigning is strictly forbidden in the case of clubs and society mass e-mails. Faculty Convenors are permitted to use their class list e-mails. Sabbatical candidates and candidates running for the position of clubs and societies officer and equality officer are not permitted to send mass e-mails in any form.

- Intimidation against either another candidate or a member of the Electoral Committee is strictly prohibited. Intimidation may be defined as any attempt to speak ill of another candidate in ones canvassing or campaigning; or the procedures of the Electoral Committee as defined by both the constitution in section 10.2.1 as well as the rules and regulations in this document. Intimidation may also be seen as any attempt to effect or discriminate against a candidate or a member of the Committee or general students in a personal manner. Any instances where Intimidation is thought to have taken place will immediately be brought to the attention of the Returning Officer who (after convening with the Committee of Arbritation) may decide to implement the Sanctions of the Electoral Committee as defined by section 7.6.3.11 of the Constitution.

- All election material must be approved by the Returning Officer before being used and stamped where applicable (this includes all physical and visual material related to canvassing and campaigning). In the event of the Returning Officer's absence, election material must be presented to either the Secretary, the Treasurer, the Public Relations Officer or the Executive Member of the Electoral Committee, who will then reconvene with the Returning Officer in a swift fashion.

- Candidates are strictly prohibited from interfering with the Campaign Materials of other candidates. In the event of a complaint regarding the campaign materials of another candidate, said complaint must be brought to the attention of the Returning Officer who will then investigate the matter further and will discuss with the Electoral Committee whether or not to take further action. Under no circumstances is a candidate to interfere, move or destroy another candidate's campaign materials. Similarly, candidates should also not request for the permission to interfere, move or destroy Campaign Materials of other Candidates. Any such requests will not be entertained.

- Candidates are prohibited from interfering with, or removing any officially stamped in-date posters relating to any matter.

- In the event that the Returning Officer believes that a candidate is grossly over-monopolizing a particular area on campus, he will convene with the Electoral Committee to discuss the implications of the action. Candidates are permitted to place posters anywhere provided they adhere to both the Budgetary Rules of DCUSU Elections 2010 and the Postering Regulations of the University.

- In the event of DCU Estates or the Cleaner Services removing or interfering with a candidate's Campaign materials, the Electoral Committee will not re-imburse or alter the budget of the candidate. Campaign materials are used at the risk of the candidate.

- All posters and associated printed material (such as flyers) must be removed within ten metres of a polling station by 9am 06/04/2010. Candidates will be permitted to continue canvassing throughout polling days as long as they proceed according to the aforementioned regulations regarding proximity to polling stations and behavioral procedure. As outlined in section 7.6.3.10.3 the Electoral Committee has the power to discipline any union member who disobeys a legitimate instruction from the Electoral Committee, this includes the Committee having the power to remove posters that have been left up after the given time on the given date.



Hustings:

- Hustings will be held on Wednesday 31/03/2010 at 2pm.

- The Hustings shall proceed in the following order:

- Faculty Convenor – DCU Business School

- Faculty Convenor – Science and Health

- Faculty Convenor – Engineering and Computing

- Faculty Convenor – Humanities and Social Sciences

- Clubs and Societies Officer

- Equality Officer

- Vice President, Campaigns and Information Officer

- Deputy President, Education and Welfare Officer

- President

- Candidates shall confirm their attendance at the hustings via e-mail with the Returning Officer of the Committee by 10am 30/03/2010.



Polling Day:

- The Polling Stations shall be open from 9am-9pm on Tuesday 06/04/2010 and 9am-4pm on Wednesday 08/04/2010.

- Canvassing shall only take place in Open Areas and is prohibited from taking place within a ten-metre radius of Polling Stations.



Withdrawing Candidature:

- Candidates may withdraw their candidature by delivering in person a signed letter of withdrawal to the Returning Officer, no later than 10am, 30/04/2010. If a candidate withdraws any later than the given date, they may lose their deposit.



Calling Recounts:

- Campaign managers or candidates may request to examine spoiled ballot papers in the presence of the Returning Officer, following the first full count.

- If a candidate feels a recount is needed, he/she may call for a recount within 24 hours of the announcements of the positions.

- In the event that a candidate should request a recount, said recount will commence consecutively with any other requested recounts, in a sequence determined by the Returning Officer on 09/04/2010 beginning at 9am.

andyman

Hmmm. Interesting that Cillian Byrne is going for Education and Welfare this year instead of President. Thought he would have given it another go.

Megan O'Riordan's another interesting one. The work she does for DanceSoc is excellent and I feel she'd be a good President. Having said that, I don't know much about the other two, so I'll wait until I hear their ideas before deciding.

At the moment though, I'll probably vote Megan/Cillian/Maeve.