CSU 2018 General Elections: Unofficial Results Released

Speak Up Disqualified, ACT Sweeps Executive Positions

NewsVince Morello — Published March 31, 2018

All referendum questions passed as well, meaning that the Concordia Community Solidarity Bookstore get a $0.05 per credit increase in their fee levy to $0.14 per credit. The CSU will also continue to collect a $1 per credit fee levy for the Library Services Fund for the next 10 years.

During the time the ballots were being counted on Friday afternoon, Speak Up was notified that they were disqualified under the standing regulation Article 316, which states that, “Student media content regarding elections and election issues can be disseminated during the polling period, but no new correspondence between candidates or referendum committee members and student media can be published during the polling period.”

In an email obtained by The Link, Chief Electoral Officer Nicholas Roberts alleges the Speak Up slate had correspondence with The Link, one of Concordia’s campus newspapers, during the polling period because an editorial had been published endorsing the slate at 9:30 a.m. on the day polling started.

In the email, Roberts stated that he found it hard to believe that Speak Up was unaware of the endorsement. Since the editorial was published on Tuesday, Roberts has not reached out to The Link to discuss whether any correspondance occurred. The Link reached out to Roberts for clarification on Speak Up’s disqualification but he did not respond.

Despite Roberts’ claims, The Link did not correspond with the Speak Up slate regarding the endorsement. The decision to endorse or not endorse specific candidates is made by The Link’s editorial team alone, without input from outside parties. Decisions are then kept secret until editorials are published.

Speak Up’s general coordinator candidate, Sophie Hough-Martin, said their slate is contesting the decision with the CSU’s judicial board, an appeals body that reviews and upholds the CSU’s rules and regulations.

Had they not been disqualified, Speak Up would have taken all positions over both competing slates by significant margins.

The full results are below:

Executive

General Coordinator

Andrei Bochis—Elected
Yes: 346
No: 245
Abstain: 188

Omar Riaz
Yes: 342
No: 141
Abstain: 183

Sophie Hough-Martin—Disqualified
Yes: 523
No: 197
Abstain: 181

Student Life Coordinator

Michèle Sandiford—Disqualified
Yes: 509
No: 187
Abstain: 207

Daniel Jolicoeur—Elected
Yes: 345
No: 220
Abstain: 207

Yara Karam
Yes: 342
No: 209
Abstain: 207

Finance Coordinator

John Hutton—Disqualified
Yes: 515
No: 188
Abstain: 240

Nichita Bobic—Elected
Yes: 335
No: 205
Abstain: 240

Kathy Du
Yes: 300
No: 221
Abstain: 239

External Affairs and Mobilization Coordinator

Camille Thompson—Disqualified
Yes: 499
No: 169
Abstain: 255

Gabriel Guppy—Elected
Yes: 360
No: 197
Abstain: 256

Mustafa Bokesmati
Yes: 284
No: 205
Abstain: 256

Loyola Coordinator

Alexis Searcy—Disqualified
Yes: 448
No: 171
Abstain: 256

Jamie Lewis-Mella—Elected
Yes: 322
No: 199
Abstain: 251

April Tardi Levesque
Yes: 275
No: 209
Abstain: 256

Felicia Da Conceicao
Yes: 98
No: 249
Abstain: 256

Sustainability Coordinator

Myriam Bourgeois—Elected
Yes: 405
No: 203
Abstain: 223

Akira De Carlos—Disqualified
Yes: 493
No: 182
Abstain: 219

Sebastien Martinez De La Garza
Yes: 284
No: 217
Abstain: 219

Academic and Advocacy Coordinator

Mikaela Clark-Gardner—Disqualified
Yes: 515
No: 171
Abstain: 251

Lida Sonylam Aman—Elected
Yes: 337
No: 200
Abstain: 251

Aouatif Zebiri
Yes: 305
No: 216
Abstain: 251

Internal Affairs Coordinator

Princess Somefun—Disqualified
Yes: 516
No: 176
Abstain: 218

Vivi To—Elected
Yes: 360
No: 202
Abstain: 218

Fatoumata Binta Balde
Yes: 303
No: 215
Abstain: 220

Referendum Questions

Library Services Fund Fee Levy—PASSED
Do you agree to contribute $1 per credit to the CSU for the Library Services Fund for the next ten years (2019-2029), in order to maintain and increase existing services funded through the Library Services Fund? The contribution would be collected in accordance with the university’s tuition and refund policy.

Yes: 724
No: 321
Abstain: 237

Two Round Electoral System—PASSED
Do you as a CSU member agree with adding by-law 7.3.2 such that the Concordia Student Union Council establish an internal Two-Round Electoral System when voting on vacant executive seats?

Yes: 629
No: 234
Abstain: 424

Concordia Community Solidarity Co-op Bookstore Fee Levy Increase—PASSED
Do you agree to increase the fee levy of the Concordia Community Solidarity Co-op Bookstore by $0.05 per credit to a total of $0.14 per credit, effective Fall 2018?

Yes: 666
No: 326
Abstain: 300

Expanding Campus Space—PASSED
Do you support the CSU expanding and improving student spaces for clubs on campus?

Yes: 948
No: 140
Abstain: 196