As the University of Nebraska-Lincoln settles into a new spring semester, the time for elections to positions of the Association of Students of the University of Nebraska is quickly approaching.
Electronic voting for positions in the 2022-23 academic year will be on March 1 and 2, 2022, and the preliminary filing deadline for candidates will be noon on Feb. 11, according to the ASUN website.
Before this deadline, candidates must fill out Form A, which requests a number of personal details and requires candidates to agree to an academic record release as well as to the duties of their office and the election rules. Executive candidates for president, internal vice president and external vice president are asked to complete their own version of the form, as well as candidates for the senate, Committee for Fee Allocations and graduate-level offices.
Form A will also ask candidates to indicate if they are running with a Student Election Group or as an independent. According to ASUN External Vice President Patrick Baker, an SEG functions like a political party in student government, uniting candidates around a set of score themes and visions for student government.
Form B will facilitate the gathering of signatures needed to appear on the ballot, which varies depending on the position being sought. Students can log into Form B and give their support to candidates once the preliminary filing deadline has passed. The portal will open on Feb. 12, and signatures must be collected by Feb. 25.
Form C allows students to form an SEG themselves, provided they select a leader, treasurer and primary programmer. Baker said he encourages students to run with an SEG if they have a group of friends they might like to run with but also said it’s possible to be elected as an independent.
As of data available on Wednesday, there is one SEG registered to run in the upcoming election. More information on those who have filed for election is publicly available here.
A number of other situational forms and resources are available on the ASUN website, Baker said, as well as his email, where students can reach out with questions or concerns about the process.
Baker said he expects more on-campus campaign activity than in recent years once the Feb. 7 open campaigning deadline passes, because students have returned to campus. After this deadline, he said candidates can hand out flyers, staff booths, create stickers and campaign on social media or in person however they see fit.
Last year, only one SEG ran for election, and Baker said he is hopeful anyone interested will feel empowered to form one and run this year.
“It’s a bit of a long process,” Baker said, “but I think what I would get across is that there [are] a variety of positions to run for.”