York University admin are investigating the recent student elections. University president Mamdouh Shoukri has formally requested that ombudsman John McCamus look into results from the York Federation of Students elections. In a March 19 statement, Shoukri said that admin will review possible infractions after receiving “a significant number of complaints” from students.
Shoukri’s statement comes after 16 of 21 candidates on the “New York” slate were disqualified for alleged misconduct, which according to the CRO’s report included distributing copies of the Excalibur student newspaper without prior permission. Since then, members of the slate have been quoted as saying the CRO’s action was unfairly harsh. The elections committee, acknowledging that disqualifications are to be a last-resort action, eventually overturned the decision.
“We are aware that unapproved campaign material is a violation of the elections procedure code,” New York presidential candidate Fraser Stevens said in a video posted on the Excalibur website. “However, a free newspaper is a free newspaper. Everyone has access.”
“I feel it’s a very telling sign,” Stevens told The Varsity. “If students and administration are questioning the integrity of this election then obviously an investigation is appropriate.”
Shoukri said in the statement, “Transparency, fairness and integrity in the election process, as well as the possibility of orderly and democratic change, must be ensured for the benefit of all of our students.”
The disqualifications fueled already lingering discussion about the details of CRO Casey Chu Cheong’s appointment, which many students said was ill-advised. Cheong, like UTSU CRO Dave Blocker, was selected in a closed interview session by the incumbents, who ended up winning a resounding victory. This is his second year as CRO. In the statement, Shoukri mentioned that the ombudsman will look into claims that the CRO was neither impartial nor independent.
Shoukri, who came under a lot of fire last year for not adequately responding to student demands during the strike, issued the statement a little over a week after disqualifications, The ombudsman is to submit his report no later than June 30.
With files from Shonith Rajendran
