Use & Purpose
We as the Returning Officer team have created this page for use by candidates, campaign teams, and campus media to ensure efficient running of the elections, and to allow campaigns clarity over the course of the Officer Elections process. All relevant queries requiring clarification received by the Returning Officer team will be answered here for the benefit of all candidates and campaigns.
The Rules as outlined in the handbook hold more authority than these clarifications, and candidates are responsible for ensuring their campaigns comply with the rules.
The dates listed below represent the date a member of the Returning Officer team posted the clarification, which remains relevant for the duration of the election, unless otherwise stipulated.
18 Feb - Questions From E-mail - Part 1
Budgeting for Zipties
We received a question about if zip ties need to be budgeted for, even if they are left over from a previous campaign.
Yes, at fair market value. You can prove to us what you think a fair market value would be by finding them online or in a store. Remember, no partial-pack budgeting!
Student Groups Sending Campaign E-mails
We received questions about Student Groups or their committees sending e-mails or messages to their members on behalf of candidates, and how to seek an endorsement from a Student Group.
We’re leaving that to committees to govern. They are welcome to send e-mail or messages to their members or to refuse to. They know what works for their group, and what it takes and means to have their group endorse a candidate.
There are no rules for how to reach out to a society or club beyond what is in the guidance. Perhaps you have connections, or maybe you’re using the groups’ socials or e-mails provided on The SU’s website!
Campaign Times
We received a question asking if there are limits on times of day campaigning can occur.
No.
SU Instagram Stories
We were asked if campaigns are allowed to tag the SU Instagram on posts and stories on relevant social media.
No, there are no rules. You are welcome to tag! Don’t expect a response from The SU, though
Photos & Slates Interpretation
We received a question about how we would judge slating if a candidate posted a picture of themselves with other candidates in the background of the photo.
We think we covered this in the meeting, but happy to elucidate! Such a photo would not in and of itself cause an issue, but the matter remains open to a broader context of interpretation. How is the camera focused? How much can be seen in the background? Did we also hear about slating activities going on in the place and with the people captured in the picture?
Should you be worried about club night photos? Parade photos? In general, I would say no. However, context matters.
Run your own campaign!
Glue
We were asked if PVA glue should be expensed.
It is not readily available, and would need to be expensed. Check the arts studio for free supplies, but they may not meet your desires.
Debate
We received a question about if the Questions to Candidates has changed to a Debate since last year.
We covered this in the meeting, but yes! Yes, it has changed. Campus media are hosting the event, the format and style are their choosing. Stay tuned for more details!
Digital Campaign Assets (i.e. websites, gital personas)
We’ve received a few questions about if stand-alone websites and digital personas are permitted.
In short, yes! However, there may be expenses incurred, such as a domain, that should be included in the budgets.
If campaign team members are volunteering their time to design websites, that is fine. It is not fine if the websites are professionally designed or designed by someone who is not a part of the campus community. In the same way someone can’t use more costumes because their aunt owns a costume shop, we can’t have candidates getting an advantage because they happen to be connected to a web designer.
With digital personas, a reminder that the rules still apply, and that anything said online will be treated with the same seriousness as if it were said in person. Cost related to developing the digital personal may apply, although we’re aware a lot of this is free to do, or based on tech savvy!
E-mail (and other places) Signatures
We received a few questions about if candidates are allowed to keep the roles they currently hold in their signature (i.e. Peer Mentor, Club/Society President, Exec, Officer, etc, all of the above...)
We’re not policing this. You are welcome to use the signature of our choice.
Existing Co-Working Networks
We received a question about the use of mailing lists and networks that exist as a result of part-time jobs taken on campus.
Read up on the rules on mailing lists, which can only be used if they are created during and for the purpose of a campaign. However, you are allowed to reach out in your personal capacity to your networks to ask for their support. It is a part of what a campaign is all about!
Group Chat Campaigning (including if you're an Admin, and if it is Academic in nature)
We received a question about if candidates are allowed to contact group chats to ask for support, with some questions focusing specifically on if candidates are allowed to campaign in group chats that are academic in nature, as set up for academic purposes, and in which they are an administrator (i.e. above to approve their own posts)
Generally, we’re supportive of giving more students an opportunity to be involved in the election. Peer Mentors or others in a position of authority should not use their touchpoints as a result of holding their role to campaign, but can reach out for support outside of that context. You need to be mindful not only of the election rules, but of the rules signed on to when you became a student leader. It may be best to limit your student leader responsibilities over the course of the election period.
Dancing as Campaigning
Yes, you are welcome to use dancing as a method of in-person campaigning, including during quieter periods, provided it remains respectful, non-disruptive, and compliant with SU election rules. It will be treated in the same way as any other form of in-person campaigning.
In relation to music and speakers, speakers may be used as long as the volume remains at a reasonable level and does not cause disruption. There are no specific restrictions on music choice or copyright considerations within the context of election campaigning (it is a “let’s stay plausibly deniable” situation), provided general SU conduct and noise expectations are met.
As always, please ensure campaigning does not interfere with teaching, events, or other students’ use of spaces.
18 Feb - Questions Taken From All-Candidates Meeting - Part 2
£1 Campaign Items & Free Candidates Pack Items
We received a number of questions seeking clarity on budgeting related to the £1 items (i.e. bed sheets and t-shirts) and the free items from the candidate packs given out at the all-candidates meeting
You may spend more than £1 per bed sheet or t-shirt, provide us with receipts, and only have £1 per bed sheet or t-shirt applied to your budget, even if you spent more than that on the items. You will also only be reimbursed £1 per item, so spend at your own risk. Be smart!
As for the items in the candidate campaign packs, they do not need to be accounted for in your budget. They are our gift to you!
What is a bed sheet? What does it cost?
A bed sheet is a flat sheet that goes on your mattress. The largest mattress sheets are super king sheets, with sheets being 220cm by 240cm (larger than the size of the mattress). Anything larger than square 52,800cm will be seen as an additional sheet, and charged as such, at each 52,800cm interval.
A similar principle applies to t-shirts. 8XL t-shirts, the largest size generally available, top out at 183cm at the chest, 178cm at the waist, with a side-seam maxing out at 127cm. Anything beyond may be counted as two shirts.
Of note, any printing on these items, fabric paint, or other items should come out of your budget separately.
Costumes from Others
We received a question about candidates receiving costumes from others for the purposes of the campaign.
In this case, it is a good idea to imagine the “Chocolate Factory” principle. If one student has a relative who owns a chocolate factory, that is not something we can expect the other candidates to reasonably have access to.
With costumes from others, we’re going to start by saying it is okay. If we find out someone’s aunt owns a costume shop – well, that is a different discussion.
The usual expectations still apply, in that you may be asked to prove that the costume was used before and was not bought for the purposes of campaigning. If this cannot be proved, it may have to be included in your budget at fair market value.
17 Feb - Questions Taken From All-Candidates Meeting - Part 1
Dumpster Diving
We had more questions than anything about being able to use materials found in bins for campaigning without the items being a drag on a campaign budget.
With significant cveates around the health & safety of items in bins, yes, you may use items form bins, such as a cardboard, wood, or other items that could be used for the normal running of a campaign. Items like cardboard or old pallet wood are of no value and will not come from campaign budgets. If items of value are sourced from bins, they may be subject to being included in your budget at a fair market value.
If you would like to know what we would value an item at before using it in your campaign, please let us know.
We do not want to hear that you used opened buckets of paint or used bed sheets you found in a bin. They are, firstly, disgusting, and secondly, genuinely of some value.
Campaigning in the City (Including Scala & Virgil)
We received a question about if campaigning in the city is allows, including with stickers and posters, and specifically in University or SU-owned and run spaces such as the Virgil Building and Scala.
Yes, in line with applicable policies (Uni and & policy apply to Virgil & Scala, stores or the local council may have rules on what kinds of posting is allowed, and those must be followed)
Members of Campaign Team in Manifestos
We were asked if the names of campaign team members can appear in manifestos.
No.
Expectations to Declare Campaign Affiliation Publicly
We were asked if campaign team members had declare their interest in a campaign when they reposted materials on social media.
No.
Expectations Related to Timeline/Deadlines with respect to Non-Elections Commitments
We received a question about what reasons may be applicable to miss deadlines, even very short 1 hour deadlines.
There are no excuses or exceptions. Deadlines must be met, even if they fall during lectures or other commitments. The best way to avoid this situation, as was explained at the meeting, is not to break any rules or even put yourself in a position where you could be accused of breaking any rules.
Candidates WhatsApp
We were asked if we will be running a WhatsApp group for candidates this year.
No. Candidates are welcome to set up their own WhatsApp group, but we expect all formal communication from us as a Returning Officer Team to happen over e-mail.
As a reminder, what happens on WhatsApp is still real life! Will be treated as in-person actions.
Changes to Manifestos (Including Substantial Ones)
We received a couple different questions about what kinds of changes to manifestos would be allowed, even as we are past the deadline now.
Firstly, any changes being offered at this point are already beyond what candidates are entitled to, and are only being done out of a kindness to the electorate and candidates at the expense of staff time, and we will only continue to make the updates as we have the time.
We have decided the updates will need to cease at noon on Thursday, when the campaigns launch. We will not have capacity after that point. Before then? Even substantial changes will be allowed, as long as we have the resources to review the changes and update the web pages.
Drying Campaign Materials
There was a question about how to deal with drying campaign materials if they are still drying at 5pm when the Arts facilities close. There was a question about another SU space that could be used.
This cannot be secured this year, but has been noted as a point to reflect on for next year.
DRO Sam
13 Feb - Campaigning Giveaways
We received a few questions about what candidates can give away are a part of their campaign. Speicifcally regarding items such as stickers, branded chewing gum, or candies. The questions involved candidate fault if the giveaways caused damage or were used to break the rules.
Giveaways are permitted, but the cost to purchase the items must come from a candidate's campaign budget. Many give aways could be used to violate the rules of the election or of campus more broadly. We expect candidates and campaigns to be aware of the rules and the damage that could be caused by giveaways, and to remain in compliance with the rules.
If rules are broken or damage caused by giveaways, we can imagine we are Returning Officers may be asked to investigate, at which point we would be trying to figure out how the damage was caused or if the rules violation happened by someone within arms reach of a candidate, who ought to have known better. We would rather avoid such situations.
We hope you see it may be a good idea to give some guidance to everyone you give a giveaway to, if you think it could be used to break rules or cause damage! Proceed at your own peril with such items.
DRO Sam
12 Feb - Established or new social media accounts
We received a question about the use of existing social media accounts for the purposes of elections.
It is the choice of the candidate how they will campaign, retooling an existing social media presence, starting elections profiles from scratch, or other options. There are likely benefits and drawbacks to using new and existing social media presences, which we will not be wading into as a returning officer team.
We wish you well in whichever direction you chose to go with your social media presence.
DRO Sam
12 Feb - Loud methods of campaigning
We received a question about the use of megaphones, speakers, or other technology used to amplify or make noise.
In general, approval is required to make significant noise on campus, noise beyond what humans may naturally make. While we have sought this approval with respect to music, megaphones have not proven useful in the past. Music provides ambiance and is probably not disruptive. Plain language pleas to vote are not useful, and have been disliked by the electorate in the past.
There is a precendent from prior elections that megaphones are not permitted, while speakers are. We think it is a good idea to continue this precendent, for the sake of the enjoyment of the electorate.
We hope you engage with students in a way that is a positive esperience for them as voters!
DRO Sam
5 Feb - Students in suspense on campaign teams
We received a question about if University of Bath students on suspense can be a part of campaign teams.
Yes.
DRO Sam
5 Feb - Pre-owned asset use in campaign
We received a question regarding the use of pre-owned assets in campiagn, specifically if their value would have to be included in the allocated campaign budget.
If an item was purchased a while ago and not for the purpose of the current campaign, it can be used without counting towards the campaign budget, but the returning officers are entitled to ask for proof that the purchase took place well in advance of the campaign and for a purpose other than the campaign. Regardless of the expressed intent of the candidate, the returning officers may have to rule that a pre-owned asset is a campaign expense. If called to rule on this, the deicison will be made based on reasonableness, and are open to appeal, as spelled out in the rules.
Our advice would be to use materials purchased within the budget and for the purpose of the campaign, to save the trouble of satisfying the returning officers, and to limit the risks to your candidacy.
DRO Sam
1 Feb - Poster Guidance
We received a question about the rules relating to posters, specifically about string and zip ties being acceptable, but tacks, tape, and blue tack not being permitted under the rules.
The spirit of the rules is to avoid any damage to the physical infrastructure of the University and to protect candidates and their campaign team members from University policy, which may result in sanctions beyond the scope of the election if the University finds their rules have been broken.
While we know cork, felt, and other bulletin boards are rare on campus with many other posters on them, we do not expect you to use string and zip ties if you happen to find enough free space on a board to put up a poster. The rules come explicitly from a place of helping candidates avoid causing damage. Even if there are other posters up or clear damage has already been caused by other posters, candidates are held to a higher standard. string and zip ties have worked in the past. Blue and white sticky tack has not worked, either damaging paint or leaving an oil stain on the paint.
DRO Sam
1 Feb - Event Guidance
We received a question about putting on an event in support of a campaign, the financial implications, and the logistical implications.
Any event put on to support a candidate is a campaign event, and, if in-person, should not take place outside of the campaigning period. Any costs associated with the event would be expected to come from the £50 allotment for each candidate in the campaign. If you would like to plan an event like this, please wait until after the all-candidates meeting so as to avoid any allegations of pre-campaigning. The all-candidates meeting is a good place to learn more about the SU officer election process.
DRO Sam
30 January - Mailing Lists & Consent
We've received a question about when and how to use mailing lists, and how to ensure individuals want to be on a campaign mailing list.
The rule states campaigners may only use a mailing list developed during and for the purpose of the campaign, developed during the campaign. We imagine this mailing list to consist of people you know to be your supporters, or interested enough in your campaign to positively affirm they want to receive your e-mails. If you want to e-mail individuals who have not positively consented to be on your mailing list, you should do so on a one-off basis, and only when you are gathering their e-mail from somewhere other than a mailing list who's purpose was something other than the election (i.e. a module mailing list should not be used, even to collect the names/e-mails of students in the module to target with one-off e-mails, as the module's purpose was not to assist a campaign for an officer position.)
E-mails for campaiging are allowed to be sent from the start of online campaining.
One-off and personalised e-mails, either to specific students or student groups asking for support (i.e. votes / endorsements) are permitted from the start of online campaigning. Candidates are allowed to prepare for the campaign, but should be careful not to violate precampaigning rules.
In terms of knowing an individual wants to receive your e-mails, satisfying the "consenting individuals" aspect of the mailing list rule: You should imagine if a member of the returning officer team asks you to prove that a student consented to receiving your campaign materials. You should be able to point towards where they provided their e-mail address and consent to receive campaign related e-mails. This may take many forms, some of which may be through an online sign-up form or a physical paper sign up form. It is a good idea to make sure the consent is documented rather than verbal.
DRO Sam
30 January - Physical Campaign Materials
We've received a question about if it is okay to procure and prepare physical campaign materials in advance of the infrastructure that is engrained in the elections process.
Before we answer, we would like to note that we provide many materials to support candidates in campaigning, including providing materials so as to save candidates money and allow for candidate creativity within their limited budget. We would encourage you to wait until after the all-candidates meeting, where you'll hear more about what will be provided by The SU to support your campaign. That is the best way to manage your budget.
With that said, candidates are allowed to procure and prepare materials for in-person campaigning before the campaign period as long as long as they are not used to campaign in advance of the in-person campaign period.
DRO Sam
30 January - Online Campaigning Preparation
We've received some quesitons about how much preparation is acceptible in advacne of online campaigning. Candidates are allowed to create social media accounts for their campaign in advance of the campaign period, provided the accounts remain private and not publicly visible. We would advise to be careful with setting up accounts in advance, as if the accounts become visible too early, either intentionally or by accident, the returning officers may have to look into the matter as pre-campaigning.
It is a good idea that all material posted to a campaign social media account be date-stamped with a date in the campaigning period. In this regard, it is important not to pre-post content that is hidden and then make it visible for the campaign. This may lead voters to wrongly feel that a candidate was pre-campaigning. Regardless of the political consequences of that, it may also lead to the returning officers looking into the matter as pre-campaigning, which is something you should want to avoid.
DRO Sam
29 January - Campaign Team and Coordination
We've received a question about if it is appropriate to be creating a campaign team at this stage (before nominations have closed). Candidates are welcome to seek campaign team members and coordinate with their campaign teams. All activity must comply with the rules on early campaigning and no public campaigning is to take place before the official campaign period begins. If candidates are recruiting too widely, too assertively, or too openly, we may be forced to rule that campaign team recruitment and coordination is, in effect, serving the purpose of campaigning. We recommend you steer clear from any campaign team coordination being perceived as campainging.
As a reminder of some of the items in the rules, there is no cap on the number of people who can be part of your campaign team, candidates will be held responsible for the actions of members of their campaign teams, and an individual may be ruled to be operating on a candidate's behalf if it can be reasonably established even without presense in campaign team group chats, mailing lists, or other campaign infrastructure.
DRO Sam
29 January - Manifesto Videos
We've received a question about if videos can be submitted as a part of manifestos.
Videos can be submitted as part of a candidates manifesto in addition to the 500-word written manifesto. Videos do not replace the written manifesto and should be treated as supplementary content.
DRO Sam
29 January - External Guidance (and Endorsements)
We received a question about if candidates may seek guidance from entities and individuals not a part of the electorate at Bath and / or not a part of the University of Bath campus community. Candidates are permitted to seek advice or guidance from individuals or entities.
As a reminder of the rules, candidates may not receive or display public endorsements or receive campaign support from external organisations or groups.
DRO Sam