ASASUD presidential candidate Joseph Grossman and running mate David Bakardjiev successfully overturned their disqualification from ASASUD’s presidential race Sunday night.
Grossman appealed the Elections Committee’s ruling that he falsified documents by signing campaign forms stating he read the election code at a hearing before the ASASUD Judicial Board. The Elections Committee believed Grossman signed his name without actually reading the elections code.
The Judicial Board, however, deemed there to be insufficient evidence supporting the penalty and dismissed the nine-point violation that had previously resulted in the disqualification of the Grossman-Bakardjiev ticket.
The Judicial Board also ruled to uphold the Elections Committee’s decision to invalidate the results of the election held on April 5 and 6 due to a number of students filing complaints stating they had technical difficulties while attempting to vote.
Grossman, a criminology and criminal justice sophomore, appealed the decision on grounds that the Election Committee did not possess the proper authority to invalidate the election without going through appropriate amendment proceedings.
“There isn’t anything in (the elections code) that gives us the power (to hold a special election), but there is nothing in there that says we can’t,” said Rheya Spigner, chair of the Elections Committee and ASASUD’s director of administration.
The decision to uphold the election invalidation means a special election is still scheduled to be held on April 14 and 15. This election may have all presidential tickets, including the two write-in presidential tickets, listed on the ballot.
Director of Parliamentary Procedures and Judicial Board chair Jose Rios Lua said the decision to have Andres Cano and running mate Brittany Morris and Diana Inzunza and running mate Rudy Rivas listed on the ballot or to keep their tickets as write-in options is still being decided.
“When we have heard back from our technical consultant we will know what the ballot will look like,” Rios Lua said.
Grossman also tried to get the Elections Committee to release the results of the initial election on grounds that they are public records. The Elections Committee has so far refused public release of the election results.
“It’s completely unjust what they’re doing right now,” said Taylor Lewis, a political science sophomore who voted for Grossman. “I just want to see what the election results are.”
Grossman’s appeal to overturn another three-point violation for distributing candy –- considered campaign material — without approval from the Elections Committee was dismissed. The Elections Committee presented a photograph of the candy submitted from a student as evidence of the violation.
“We did buy candy but we did not distribute it, to my knowledge,” Bakardjiev said.
The Judicial Board also upheld the Elections Committee’s decision to carry over all current violations, stating that to not do so would require resubmission and reapproval of all campaign material.
Currently, Grossman’s ticket has accrued six penalty points. Cano’s ticket has accrued eight penalty points and Inzunza’s ticket has zero.
Contact the reporter dustin.volz@asu.edu
Mauro Whiteman contributed reporting.
