STUDENT COUNCIL GENERAL ELECTION information

Article IV, Section 3 of our Constitution:

3. There will be a Petitioning Period of at least three school days, in which all potential candidates will have the opportunity to collect signatures in support of their becoming a candidate for Executive Office. The dates for this period and the Rules of Petitioning will be set by the Advisor, who will consult the eighth grade members of the Executive Board.

The Advisor will provide in advance the Rules of Petitioning to all potential candidates, who have registered according to the Second Section of this Article.
To formally become a candidate for Executive Office, a registered student must have their Petition signed by fifty sixth or seventh grade students, who may each not sign any other petition for the same office.
Any potential candidate that violates the posted Rules of Petitioning may be disqualified by a unanimous vote of the Advisor and all eighth grade members of the Executive Board.

RULES OF PETITIONING - 2007

Petitioning is the process where you will attempt to formally qualify as a candidate for Executive Office. This important part of the democratic process requires you to get out there and actively establish a base of support for your possible candidacy. The Petitioning Period is April 14-17. A minimum level of support – fifty sixth or seventh grade students – is required to formally become a candidate and move on to the next stage, Electioneering.

All sixth and seventh grade students will receive one set of four Petition Cards in homeroom on Monday April 14. They will be instructed by homeroom teachers that in order to sign any candidate’s Petition, they must first hand over the Petition Card for the office that candidate intends to run for. The sheet that contains the cards will also include a clear set of rules for their use. You will also receive a set of Petition Cards, but you may NOT sign your own Petition
Article IV Section 3 of our Constitution requires that students only sign ONE petition for each office. If they sign two or more, all of their signatures for that office will become null and void. Therefore, the Petition Card is YOUR PROTECTION against any student who would try to intentionally violate this rule and possibly get you disqualified (for having less than fifty valid signatures). If they have one, you can be assured that they have not signed any other candidate’s Petition, and that their signature on yours will be valid. DO NOT allow anyone to sign your Petition without FIRST taking their Petition Card!
Only registered potential candidates may collect signatures and Petition Cards. NOBODY else – including campaign workers – is allowed to collect signatures or Petition Cards on your behalf. Students will be instructed to only give Petition Cards to potential candidates, but it is YOUR responsibility to make sure this rule is not violated. DO NOT give your Petition Packet to anyone else, and do not allow anyone else to collect signatures or Petition Cards!
You may only collect FIFTY signatures. DO NOT collect more than fifty Petition Cards and signatures – this unfairly denies other potential candidates a fair opportunity to complete their Petitions, and is grounds for disqualification! To prevent accusations, all potential candidates are advised to closely follow the guidelines above and to immediately hand in their Candidate Application Packets and Cards directly to Mr. Miller as soon as fifty signatures are obtained!
You will all be given a fair and equal chance to "cross-petition" the opposite grade on Tuesday April 15. Seventh grade potential candidates will visit Period 5 lunch to cross-petition the sixth grade, and sixth grade potential candidates will visit Period 6 lunch to cross-petition the seventh grade. If you are absent from school, you will lose this opportunity. To ensure that you are not denied this opportunity, be in school and report DIRECTLY TO B-16 at the end of the prior period – sixth grade potential candidates should NOT report to their Period 6 class, and seventh grade potential candidates should NOT report to their Period 5 class!
The Petitioning Period ends at 3:00 p.m. on Thursday April 17. Any potential candidate that does not hand in their fully completed Candidate Application Packet along with the fifty Petition Cards they have collected by this deadline will be ELIMINATED from contention. Absence from school is NOT an excuse.
Disqualification: Article IV Section 3 of the Student Council Constitution empowers the Advisor and a unanimous vote of the eighth grade members of the current Executive Board to disqualify a candidate for any violation of these Rules of Petitioning.