ASUO presidential candidates are taking some time off from heavy campaign extravaganzas — and are ready to also give students a small break from election drama.
The Executive general election was put on hold March 4 and the ASUO Constitution Court will decide Friday whether to uphold Bret Jacobson and Matt Cook’s disqualification from the race. With a grievance filed against candidates Nilda Brooklyn and Joy Nair asking for their disqualification, it is now completely uncertain who will appear on the general election ballot.
An election for just the ballot measures was halted Wednesday after five student senators filed a grievance against the Multicultural Center measure. With Dead Week and Finals Week off-limits to elections, voting won’t happen until spring term at the earliest.
For now, all candidates agree that campaign tactics should be light, at least for the next week, to avoid overkill, which could have the undesirable effect of making students tired of the election altogether.
Brooklyn and Nair, who took the lead in the primary, were prepared last week to start indulging in strong general-election campaign strategies, and both say the delay hasn’t lessened their fervor.
“I was excited to go this week,” Brooklyn said. “But that excitement hasn’t dissolved. We just have more prep time, and it also means we’ll do better in our classes this week.”
Both of the other teams said they will approach the next three weeks with the mindset that it will be their names on the ballot.
Oliver said he is confident that his grievance against Jacobson and Cook, which led to their disqualification, will hold its ground in court. He said he will continue campaign efforts. He filed a grievance after Jacobson’s and Cook’s campaign distributed fliers in the residence halls.
Bailey added that until the court rules otherwise, he and Oliver are still front-runners in the Executive race.
“Until a reverse decision is made, we are in the general election, which means we have a shot in winning this,” he said. “We have to move forward as planned.”
But Jacobson and Cook said they appealed the ASUO Elections Board’s decision to disqualify them because they have a strong case, and are looking forward to being put back on the ballot.
“A large part of our effort will be protecting campus democracy and overturning the Election Board’s decision,” Jacobson said.
Although the candidates may have almost three weeks of preparation time for the election, they aim to find a balance between making students drown in a sea of fliers and posters up until voting day and forgetting candidate’s names completely.
“We don’t think it’s good for the whole student population to continue heavy campaigning. … Students will grow weary of that,” Jacobson said. “But we will continue to talk to groups who we think would benefit from our new approach to student government.”
Brooklyn and Nair plan to use the extra time to get feedback from groups and continue to prepare “surprises” they have in store for campus when election time comes. They said meanwhile it’s hard to encourage students to vote when there’s no set date.
“This is an opportunity to see what people think about our message so far,” Brooklyn said. “And we’re excited to get more people involved. But you can’t tell people to get out the vote when you can’t tell them when to vote.”
Bailey and Oliver said they plan to “just relax” for the next week, but will continue to design advertisements and also meet with groups they haven’t talked to. They said their biggest concern is that students will lose interest because the election has been “drawn out,” and that will decrease the already-low voter turnout.
“This will be the third time students have to vote,” Bailey said. “But we have to maintain support and interest in the election.”
Cook said that although it may be harder to campaign if elections take place after spring break, this also gives students more time to get informed. He added that the delay won’t harm anyone’s campaign, but will just put off their plans for a couple of weeks.
Candidates also recognize that final exams and projects will be the top priority for many students until the term ends, and that many may appreciate less campaigning by the candidates.
“We have to be respectful of the fact that students came to the U of O to go to school, not just to vote for ASUO president and vice president,” Brooklyn said.
