Updated Jan. 21, 2025, at 10:30 a.m.: The Act’s sponsor has indicated he plans to withdraw the Act from consideration.

Updated Jan. 20, 2025, at 3:25 p.m.: President Cherissa Lindsay indicated concerns with the Act.

At its next meeting, the Student Bar Association (SBA) Senate is set to consider the Election Administration Update Act. The Act is set to be introduced by Senator Sammy Marks (1L-Ginsburg), but Sen. Marks has indicated he now plans to withdraw the Act from consideration at the meeting. If adopted, the Act would significantly amend the SBA bylaws pertaining to student elections. Among its provisions, the Act would change elections for President and Executive Vice President by requiring candidates to resign from student organization leadership roles. The Act would also allow those positions to be elected with less than 50% of votes cast.

Some candidates must resign from student organization leadership roles.

To start, the Act would require any candidate for President or Executive Vice President to resign any executive board position they have in any student organization during the election period. This includes any “leadership role with voting power on organizational decisions or control over organizational resources.” The amendment includes provisions for verifying compliance, and if a candidate fails to comply, they would be disqualified from the election. This provision would not impact election of senators or other elected positions.

Sen. Marks says “leadership demands commitment” and these executive positions “require undivided attention.” Under the Act, successful candidates would not be required to avoid conflicts of interest after the campaign period or during their term in office.

This past weekend, in an email to all senators, Senator Marcella Rubini (2L-Cardozo) urged this provision to be struck from the Act. Sen. Rubini notes that candidates will likely have to resign from their SBA roles in early February, “leaving SBA with vacancies that could be catastrophic to our already disorganized SBA.” Sen. Marks has since indicated he would submit an amendment exempting current SBA positions and only require non-SBA leaders to take a “temporary leave of absence.”

Moreover, Sen. Rubini noted that the rule would also act as an “inequitable” deterrent that would preventing differing perspectives in SBA leadership. Sen. Rubini said this provision is inconsistent with “fairness and reasonableness.” In response, Sen. Marks says the rule would “encourage fresh perspectives and new leadership” while ensuring “equal footing for all candidates.” He points to examples at some other schools and the similarity to “real-world political campaigns.”

SBA President Cherissa Lindsay has stated she does not support the Act. Pres. Lindsay is “concerned” that the Act may be “written because a potential candidate felt threatened by other possible candidates.” Pres. Lindsay says “making this specific bill this close to the elections is targeted.”

President and Executive Vice President threshold decreases from 50% to 40%.

The Act also purportedly would amend Bylaw 823(B) regarding the runoff election procedures for elections of President and Executive Vice President. Under current procedures, candidates for President and Executive Vice President can only win with 50% of votes cast. The amendment would lower the threshold for winning down to 40%. But, this amendment may conflict with Article II, Section 2, Clause 1 of the SBA Constitution, which has specific procedures including a majority threshold for those elections.

This provision seems to be a reaction to last year when a runoff election occurred in the presidential election. In that election, the top candidate received only 41.2% of the votes cast, with the two trailing candidates each receiving approximately 25% of the votes cast.

Some students have mentioned that the students could be better served by a provision allowing for ranked-choice voting, similar to the system adopted and approved for the District of Columbia in November. Those proponents say a ranked-choice voting system would allow the election of a majority-supported candidate with only a single election, without spoiler-effects, and without subjecting students to additional campaigning.

The Act has other minor changes. First, the Act would require any candidate’s “campaign manager” to register with the SBA Elections Committee. Next, the Act would add provisions to reflect how SBA actually operates, such as allowing for candidate informational meetings to be held virtually instead of only in person. Finally, the Act includes other changes including marginal increases to the maximum amounts that candidates for SBA President and SBA Executive Vice President may spend.

When are elections? What happens next?

Although the SBA has not yet released the election calendar for this year, the SBA normally holds elections in middle or late February.

The Act is scheduled to be heard at the SBA Senate meeting scheduled for Tuesday Jan. 21 in the Moot Court Room of the LLC. Executive Vice President Nigel Walton sent an email to senators predicting “consternation” and reminding senators of the meeting’s rules of order. In response, one senator suggested that Vice Pres. Walton would “suppress senators” in the meeting to change election procedures as he pursues a candidacy for President. Since this article was published, Sen. Marks has indicated he intends to withdraw the Act from consideration at Tuesday’s meeting.

If heard and passed, the Act’s provisions would apply to the SBA elections this year, unless they are successfully challenged as unconstitutional in the SBA Supreme Court.