Letters to the Editor

Unfair rules

To the Editor:

I am saddened to have recently learned of ridiculous rules and significant loopholes within the Nominations and Elections Committee that disqualify candidates who are innocent of any wrongdoing.

I learned of the NEC's unfair policies and actions firsthand. I was the senior who posted a note on the Kappa Alpha Theta listserv supporting Adam Moss for Undergraduate Assembly ("Winners of UA, class board posts announced," The Daily Pennsylvanian, 4/11/02).

Currently, any student promoting a candidate is considered his or her surrogate, and the candidate is held responsible for all surrogates' actions. I was not Adam's surrogate; I posted a note to support him without his knowledge because I had worked with him on student government in high school and thought that he would be great on the UA.

Adam was disqualified for my phrasing of the e-mail. Instead of simply stating he was running and encouraging general voting, the e-mail was in straightforward support. He was disqualified because an ignorant student posted a note without his request or permission, and phrased it incorrectly.

NEC Vice Chairwoman Melissa LaVigne said, "It's impossible to control someone else's actions." She is correct, and if the NEC feels this way, it must change the rules.

The current rules make it possible to sabotage a candidate's campaign simply by posting a note of alleged support. It also discourages general student involvement; students will fear promoting a candidate because they risk disqualifying a candidate unknowingly.

The NEC does not have listserv campaigning policies posted on its Web site. It e-mails the listserv policies and the rules about phrasing to the candidates, but not to the student body.

If you want to hold a candidate responsible for the actions of 10,000 students, those students should be informed of the rules beforehand. The NEC makes no attempt to educate the student body and then disqualifies candidates for the body's mistakes.

Kimberly Rittberg

College '02

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