One Oregon filed a grievance against I’m with UO senate seat 17 candidate Pablo Alvarez for wrongfully using a university email list to advocate for his candidacy on April 10.
The grievance claims Alvarez sent out a mass email to political science students using using a department listserv. The recipient of the email said “undisclosed-recipients” on both evidence submitted.
The subject line of the email read, “MAKE YOUR $250 FEE WORTHWHILE AT UO.” Alvarez then addressed the recipients as “ALL you wonderful Political Science majors.”
According to election rules, candidates are not allowed to use any university email list, including Blackboard, department, class, or program listserv. It specified that campaign emails must be addressed to specific individuals.
By using a listserv, which is meant to serve specific purposes within majors on campus, Alvarez allegedly violated election rules on equality of access.
The grievance calls to ban I’m with UO from two days of campaigning in the runoff election.
I’m with UO campaign manager Andrew Dunn said the allegation is false. He said Alvarez used the blind carbon copy feature in emails to hide the recipient’s email address, explaining the “undisclosed-recipients.”
“The I’m With UO campaign has run the cleanest campaign thus far,” Dunn said. “If Elections board were to find us culpable of a violation, we will comply and most likely will not file an injunction to con court. We feel respecting the Elections Board and Con Court decisions are vital to the ASUO election process.”
Dunn sent the Emerald a screenshot of Alvarez’s email with 99 individual email addresses listed in the Bcc feature. The email recorded to be sent out at 10:46 p.m. April 10, corresponding to the time and date of two emails filed in One Oregon‘s grievance. Dunn said it was the only email Alvarez sent out.
The elections board has until April 13 to rule on this grievance.
The previous article misquoted Andrew Dunn. I’m with UO will not filed an appeal to Constitution Court if the elections board find it guilty.
The two screenshots attached with One Oregon‘s grievance.
The screenshot that Dunn provided to the Emerald in response of the allegation.
