The USA Judicial Board reinstated a disqualified general representative candidate in the Undergraduate Students Association Council elections Thursday evening.
Susie Turner, a second-year African American studies and public affairs student, was initially disqualified by the USA Elections Board for exceeding the elections board’s $200 personal-spending campaign expenditure limit by $8.20, according to the board’s notice of disqualification. The judicial board reduced her punishment to a ban on campaigning after finding that the elections board violated the election code when disqualifying her.
The elections board found that Turner failed to report the cost of printed flyers that were donated to her, which count toward expenditure limits. The board gave Turner the opportunity to amend her financial report, but Turner did not provide a fair-market value of the flyers as requested, the board said in the notice of finding.
The board found the fair-market value of the flyers to be $14.50, bringing Turner’s total spending to $208.20 and exceeding the personal spending limit.
Turner alleged the elections board violated the election code by inconsistently applying spending requirements across candidates, neglecting her market value estimate for the flyers and imposing a disproportionate sanction on her.
[Related: General representative candidate marks fourth USAC election disqualification]
The judicial board reinstated Turner, alleging that the elections board unfairly took the cost of using a private printer into account, which put her over the $200 threshold.
The judicial board said in its decision posted on social media Thursday evening that the Election Code does not make a distinction between private and public printers, making Turner’s disqualification unfair.
“Where the Board finds a Code-based ambiguity material to the dispute, the Board may craft a remedy responsive to its specific findings rather than choose between sanctions that do not fit them,” the judicial board said in its ruling.
The judicial board ruled that the elections board did not violate the election code in determining the market value for Turner’s flyers, as she failed to provide code-compliant information, the judicial board said in its decision.
Jack Donaldson, the financial chair of the elections board, said during the hearing that falsification of expenditures is a reason for immediate disqualification.
“This isn’t a donated service from the school, she is using a staff printer,” said Donaldson, a fourth-year applied mathematics student.
The judicial board sided with the elections board on Turner’s allegation that her disqualification was disproportionate, citing that the elections board acted within its authority to authorize sanctions for failure to adhere to the election code.
Turner alleged during the hearing that she was treated unfairly by the elections board when it valued her use of a private printer at fair market rates, while other candidates who used private printers only had to report the cost of purchasing paper.
Hesma Valdes, a candidate for USAC internal vice president, said during the hearing that she used a private printer but only was required to report the paper she purchased rather than the printing.
“The Board recognizes that where an ambiguity in the Code itself contributed to the disputed conduct, mechanical application of the available sanctions would represent an endorsement of ambiguous election guidelines that pose a barrier to entry in pursuing elected office,” the judicial board said in its ruling.
The elections board disqualified Brinaye Grant, another USAC general representative candidate, for submitting incomplete and inaccurate campaign finance information, according to the board’s notice of disqualification Wednesday evening. The judicial board rejected Grant’s petition for a hearing Thursday.
Eight candidates remain in the general representative race following Turner’s reinstatement, with voting set to close Friday at noon.
