University of Ottawa

Muslim Students Association

Election Regulations 2015

1.0 General Requirements

1.1. These guidelines are to enforce fairness; however, do remember that youre firstly held
accountable to Allah, then to the Elections Committee.
1.2. Each participant in an election campaign, but in particular, the candidate, is responsible
for familiarizing themselves with the UOMSA Constitution and the official Electoral
Regulations in order to ensure that his/her actions do not contravene the Constitution or
the official Electoral Regulations.
1.3. A Volunteer is defined as anyone who campaigns on behalf of a candidate.
1.4. The Elections Committee may, at any time, amend the Electoral Regulations in order to
ensure the fairness and integrity of the elections. When an amendment is made, the
Elections Committee will communicate any changes, by email, to all candidates and
official representatives. The rule comes into effect immediately upon the Chief Electoral
Officers communication to the candidates; however, the candidate has 24 hours, starting
from the point the email is sent out, to acknowledge the change, and can only be
penalized after this time period.
2.0 Duties and Obligations of Candidates and Committees
2.1. A candidate must, from the moment of publication of the list of official candidates:
2.1.1. Read the Electoral Regulations and the UOMSA Constitution and follow these
rules until the end of the electoral process;
2.1.2. Ensure that their electoral team follows the regulations and responsibilities
outlined in these documents;
3.0 Affiliation
3.1. Candidates are not allowed to affiliate in any way with other candidates.
3.2. Candidates shall appear on the ballot individually.
4.0 Types of UOMSA Members
4.1. There are two types of membership with the Association: General Members and Voting
Members.
4.1.1. General Members: A general member is any student, faculty, or staff member of
the University of Ottawa that partakes in any UOMSA service or activity and/or
wishes to be a member of the Association, and agrees to abide by the UOMSA
Constitution.
4.1.1.1.
General Members have the right to:
4.1.1.1.1.
Nominate a candidate for a position;
4.1.1.1.2.
Campaign for a candidate;
4.1.2. Voting Members: A voting member is any student, faculty, or staff member of the
University of Ottawa that has paid the $2 membership fee, and agrees to abide by
the UOMSA Constitution.

4.1.2.1.
Only Voting members have the right to:
4.1.2.1.1.
Canvass votes for a particular candidate;
4.1.2.1.2.
Entice electors to vote for a candidate;
5.0 Email Regulations
5.1. Each candidate will be responsible for checking their emails at least twice every working
day.
6.0 Nomination Rules
6.1. Only UOMSA voting members are allowed to be nominated for a position.
6.2. Nomination of the President:
6.2.1. Only current members of the Executive Board can be nominated to be President
for the following year.
6.2.2. In order to be an eligible candidate, current members of the Board will
anonymously vote on whether or not they truly believe the nominee is capable of
being President.
6.2.2.1.
This rule is enforced to:
6.2.2.1.1.
Encourage the election of the President based on capability;
6.2.2.1.2.
Prevent the election of the President based on popularity within the
Voting Members.
6.2.2.2.
Current members of the Board are chosen to determine the eligibility of
the nominee because since they have worked with the nominee for at least
one term, they would have the best idea of whether or not the nominee is
capable of filling the said position.
6.2.2.3.
A total of 8 votes will be cast all members of the Board shall
anonymously vote on the matter except the nominee. A minimum of 6 out
of the 8 votes must be in favor of the nominee in order for the nominee to
be an eligible candidate.
6.2.2.4.
In the event where more than one person is nominated to be President,
Rule 6.2.2 applies for each candidate.
6.2.3. Once eligible, the candidate(s) will follow the rest of the Election Process as
usual.
6.3. At least 30 nomination signatures need to be collected for a person to be nominated.
6.4. The nomination signatures may be collected from the general members and/or the voting
members.
6.5. The candidates need to get all the signatures on their own; their representatives cannot
get the signatures on behalf of them.
6.6. The position the candidate is running for needs to be written on the signature form
before any signature is collected.

6.7. The position the candidate is running for needs to be clearly printed, cannot have any ink
doubling, cannot be scratched and cannot be written over whiteout.
6.8. If a candidate decides to change the position they wish to run for at any point throughout
the signature collection, a new signature form needs to be filled, with the new position
clearly printed in accordance with 6.5 and 6.6.
6.9. Signature forms submitted later than the deadline indicated will not be accepted under
any condition.
7.0 Rules Regarding Voting Day(s)
7.1. All campaigning shall be out of sight and sound of the polling station. This includes - but
is not limited to - soliciting votes or distributing publicity within 10 meters of a polling
station.
7.2. Candidates and volunteers shall not converse with, nor ask questions to, any of the poll
clerks. If they have a question or complaint, they must contact the Elections Committee.
7.3. Candidates and committees will be responsible for the actions of their representatives
and volunteers, with regards to campaigning in viewing and hearing range of polling
stations.
7.4. A violation of any of these rules could be considered a major violation, and could result
in the immediate disqualification of the violating candidate.
8.0 Ballots
8.1. Each ballot will list the names of the candidates alphabetically, by surname.
8.2. Ballot counting:
8.2.1. The Elections Committee is responsible for the system and organization of the
ballot audit.
8.2.2. The Elections Committee will relay results as soon as they see fit.
9.0 Violations
9.1. Throughout the entire election process, any person who by themselves, with/by another
person, directly or indirectly offers, procures, provides or promises to procure or provide
any sort of compensation to induce any person to vote or refrain from voting, shall be
guilty of violation of these Regulations and will be subject to punishment.
9.2. The vote is by secret ballot. Any attempt to violate, and any violation of, the principle of
secrecy of any vote is a violation of these Regulations.
10.0 Penalties
10.1. Depending on the severity of the minor violation, the candidate may be penalized in
one or more of the following ways, as the Elections Committee sees fit:
10.1.1. A candidate may receive a written or verbal warning and may be asked to correct
the penalty, if possible;

10.1.2. A portion of the candidates votes may be considered invalid. That portion will be
disclosed to the offending party no later than the beginning of the ballot counting.
Its at the discretion of the Elections Committee to decide the portion of invalid
votes, up to a maximum of 25%.
10.2. Should a candidate repeatedly violate the Electoral Regulations, it is up to the
discretion of the Elections Committee to disqualify the candidate from the election
process, regardless of whether the repeated violations are minor or major.
10.3. In the case of a major violation, a meeting between the Elections Committee and the
candidate shall be held immediately, to inform the candidate of the consequences of their
actions.
10.4. The ultimate course of action for any major breach of these Electoral Regulations shall
be the immediate disqualification of the candidate.
10.5. A penalty may be attributed to a candidate if the candidate or a campaign volunteer
breaches the Electoral Regulations.
11.0 Complaints
11.1. Any member of the UOMSA may lodge a complaint with the Elections Committee.
11.2. It is up to the person making the complaint to prove the accusations.
11.3. A candidate or volunteer may not - directly or indirectly - ask another person to submit
a complaint, which would not have been submitted without intervention.
12.0 Powers of the Elections Committee
12.1. The Elections Committee will use any and all powers available to them to ensure that
the Electoral Regulations are respected and adhered to by all candidates and
committees.
12.2. The discretionary powers of the Election Committee are given on the basis of good
judgment on their part, and shall always reflect fairness with the integrity of the
elections procedures in mind.
13.0 Appeals
13.1. Appeals will be conducted at three distinct levels:
13.1.1. Any decision may be appealed first to the Elections Committee with written
justification;
13.1.2. If unsatisfactory, the decision may be appealed to a committee of executives not
running for re-election;
13.1.3. Finally, if that proves unsatisfactory, the final appeal lies within members of the
advisory council not on the Elections Committee, or whatever person(s) the
Advisory Council chooses to delegate judgment to.
14.0 General Campaign Rules

14.1. Candidates may not campaign in or around the MultiFaith room (UCU125).
14.2. Public endorsements at any time are strictly prohibited (whether its after prayers,
halaqas, or any gathering arranged by the UOMSA) except if its allowed beforehand
by the Elections Committee.
14.3. Candidates should not campaign on official MSA or event pages.
14.4. Candidates will be responsible for the actions of their representatives and volunteers in
all regards.
15.0 Platforms
15.1. All nominees are required to write a platform consisting of 250-300 words. Platforms
will be made available under the Elections section on the UOMSA website.
16.0 Posting Rules
16.1. It is strictly prohibited to post publicity materials (posters, flyers, etc.) throughout
campus, especially in the vicinity of the MultiFaith room (UCU 125).