All Rules below are in addition to our existing Articles of Governance on referenda.
1.0. Definitions:
1.1. Agent = The lead campaigner responsible for officially coordinating the campaign for one side in the referendum. They must be a fully registered student member of The SU Bath.
1.2. Campaigner = A member of the agent’s campaign team who will support them in advocating for one side in the referendum. They must be a fully registered student member of The SU Bath.
1.3. If multiple agents come forward for each side, they will be asked to work as a team.
1.4. Multiple agents who come forward for a side are to be considered as one agent. The SU Bath will require a list of names of who will be acting as the agent/campaign team for the campaign. Only people on the named team would be eligible for reimbursements.
1.5. Fully registered student members of The SU Bath are free to campaign without being associated with an agent.
2.0. The three principle rules:
2.1. Campaigners must act in the interests of a fair referendum.
2.2. Campaigners must treat all others with respect. This includes engaging in healthy debate and not campaigning negatively.
2.3. Campaigners should only undertake activities that others can also reasonably do.
3.0. Eligibility
3.1. To be eligible to vote and campaign you must be a fully registered student member of the SU Bath.
3.2. Students who are staff may campaign and take part in the referendum, but must remain impartial whilst working in their student staffing role, with the exception of Student Officers.
3.3. SU Bath student groups are entitled to endorse one referendum stance. If your student group would like to endorse, please contact sureturningofficer@bath.ac.uk
4.0. Costs and Resources:
4.1. An agent’s referendum campaign must not exceed £50 in expenditure. [See definition of agent above for reference]. Expenditure up to the limit of £50 will be reimbursed by The SU Bath only to members of the campaign team. This is £50 total, and not £50 per member.
4.2. No pre-existing materials may be used for campaigning. Items freely and readily available to all campaigners can be used without deduction from expenses and can be used without itemisation. If you have any queries regarding this, please speak to the returning officer or deputy returning officer first.
4.3. All agents must submit all their campaign costs with receipts to the Returning Officer and Deputy Returning Officers. The final deadline for expenses will be made clear for each individual election. If no expenditure is incurred this must be declared to the Deputy Returning Officer.
4.4. It is mandatory for agents to attend a daily agent drop in with the Returning Officer/Deputy Returning Officers to update expense forms.
4.5. No 'part expensing' is permitted (you must expense the total cost of the entire item you have purchased, e.g. the entire pack of transfer paper, not just the cost of half of it - even if you just used half.)
4.6. Postage & Packaging costs do not need to be expensed.
4.7. Social media can be used to campaign, but targeted advert costs will form part of the allotted expenditure limits. Groups may use social media to campaign as long as the usage complies with the three principle rules. Each agent may send The SU Bath a word limited statement by a set deadline for inclusion on The SU Bath webpage for the relevant referendum.
4.8. No banners are permitted. Posters no larger than A3 may be used but must be affixed using string only.
5.0. Timing:
5.1. No 'Early campaigning' is permitted. This excludes creating election content in a public place ahead of the election period (as long as there is reasonably no form of campaigning). Agents are permitted to tell close friends or external organizations of their appointment before campaigning begins.
5.2. Notification: Any member wishing to initiate a referendum must provide The SU Bath with a minimum of one month's notice prior to the proposed date. Notice is deemed to commence upon submission of an email to SU Voice setting out the intention to hold a referendum, the proposed question, and confirmation of whether the matter has been discussed with a Student Officer. This period enables The SU to make the necessary arrangements and put in place the infrastructure required to deliver the referendum. SU Voice reserves the right to amend the proposed referendum dates by advising the Board of Trustees of any operational challenges that may affect delivery, including but not limited to concurrent elections or Freshers' periods.
5.3. Research for a campaign can take part before the campaign period starts.
6.0. Location:
6.1. Campaigning cannot occur in the following places:
6.2. Campaigners must allow voters to cast their ballot freely and without interference. All electronic devices are counted as ballot papers in this context.
7.0. Rulings:
7.1. All rulings on the interpretation of the rules will be made by the Returning Officer or their nominated representative (i.e. DRO). Interpretation will be in the interest of the electorate above all others.
7.2. Referendum rules are in addition to general SU and University rules and regulations, and the Law.
7.3. If a breach of these rules has occurred, the Returning Officer or their nominated representative may apply a sanction.
7.4. Sanctions can include, but are not limited to:
8.0. Complaints, grievances, and appeals:
8.1. These must follow the grievance procedure.
8.2. It is mandatory for agents to attend a daily agent drop in with the Returning Officer/Deputy Returning Officers to update and inform of any outstanding complaints.
8.3. Any full member of The SU Bath can submit an election grievance if they believe an agent or their team’s behaviour is in breach of the rules during a referendum.
8.4. Grievances will normally only be accepted within 24 hours from the incident and should be submitted to the Grievances Form. No grievances will be accepted if sent through email or any other channels. Finally, no grievances will be considered after 1 hour from the close of voting.
8.5. All outstanding grievances will be resolved before the conduct of the count. The only accepted grievances after this will be in relation to the count itself and must be submitted within 1 hour of the announcement of the results.
8.6. Grievance submissions will be considered by the Deputy Returning Officer, and sometimes in consultation with the relevant teams. The DRO will decide whether to accept (uphold) or reject the grievance, and you will be notified in writing of any resulting action.
8.7. To help the Deputy Returning Officer consider your grievance, it should be factual and contain clear evidence about the complaint. Grievances that are comprised of hearsay or activity that does not directly affect you may not be successful. The Deputy Returning Officer reserves the right to consider grievances as vexatious or retaliatory and may take disciplinary action accordingly.
8.8. Appeals If a student is dissatisfied with the outcome of the grievance, they may be able to request the opportunity to appeal. The appeal stage will not usually consider the issues afresh or involve a further investigation.
8.9. Only the individuals directly impacted by the decision may appeal.
8.10. Appeals cannot be made by third parties (someone who submitted the complaint but is not directly sanctioned or affected).
8.11. An appeal can only be made if a sanction has been imposed. If a complaint is dismissed, there is no right of appeal.
8.12. If the Decision-Making Officer (DRO) upholds a complaint and imposes a sanction, the people who submitted the original complaint cannot appeal simply because they disagree with the sanction chosen. The right to appeal belongs only to the individuals who have received a sanction. The appeals process exists to give fairness to the person who has been sanctioned not to re-run the complaint or increase penalties.
8.13. Appeals must be made in writing no later than one hour after the decision and must be submitted by completing the Microsoft Form, following the normal procedure outlined above. This will normally be considered by the Returning Officer. The Returning Officer will decide whether to accept (uphold) or reject the appeal, and you will be notified by the RO in writing of any resulting action. The RO’s decision is final and completes the appeals process