Facebook.com has generated more SA elections campaign controversy-this time with the Homecoming elections or Mr. and Miss MSU. Friends of certain candidates created groups endorsing their hopeful for the honored position.
However, the SA Constitution prohibits the active campaigning for Mr. and Miss MSU, including the use of “any form of mass communication.”
SA elections commissioner Spencer Broocks said Facebook is mass communication at its best.
“If your organization starts a group for his candidate, then that candidate would be held liable,” he also added.
Groups campaigning for the elections of Michael Pennington, Edward Sanders, Lauren Phelps and Sarah Smith were all accessible on Facebook at one time during the past week.
“Technically, the campaign doesn’t start until after the candidate’s meeting,” Broocks said.
Prior to the meeting Monday night, the groups for Pennington, Sanders and Phelps were created.
Broocks said those three were removed from the Web site after the meeting, and since campaigning had not officially started at the time of their creations, that they were not in violation of election’s codes.
Smith’s group, which was created by her roommate, Meg Malone, on Tuesday was removed from the site the following Wednesday.
Malone said she had created the group while Smith was absent from their residence.
“She (Sarah) came in, and I told her. She said I couldn’t do that since it was illegal,” Malone said.
Jorden Cunningham, another friend of Smith, said once Smith informed her of the problem she and Malone tried to delete the group.
“We didn’t know how to delete a group, so we changed the name and messaged all the members,” Cunningham said. “It’s gone now.”
Smith said she was sorry for the problems the group created.
The recent issues with Facebook.com have brought to light an issue that has plagued many schools across the country when university elections were influenced by Facebook.
Last year’s SA executive elections were marred when a questionable group promoted its candidate before the campaigning was allowed to commence.
That particular instance was not ruled a violation by last year’s SA election commissioner, Mary E. Brown.
“With the advent of Facebook, the rules of campaigning obviously need to be looked at,” SA president Jon David Cole said. “This has really turned into something of a phenomenon.”
Cole added that any campaign reform would be something for the SA Senate to take up.
Per the SA Constitution, first violations of the election’s code will result in a warning and a written statement signed by a member of the elections committee.