Election Days of the Xavier University Student body for the
next school year have arrived. A quick review of the list of candidates leaves one
with little choice especially in the positions for the Central Student
Government. Considering this situation, we cannot blame some students who are voicing
out their discontent over the seeming “absence of a choice”. Calls for selecting
“none” has been circulating around social media and has posed as a fearful
scenario which the ELECOM and the CSG are mobilizing to avert.
In the legal sense, voting “none” per se does not create a
failure of elections.
Article 1, Section 5, paragraph B of the 2011 Omnibus
Election Code of the XU-CSG provides:
If in the case
where the population of those who voted is less than twenty-five percent (25%)
of the Xavier University student population as for the CSG President and
Vice-President; and less than fifteen percent (15%) of the college student
population for the Council Presidents. ELECOM shall then hold for a re-election
for the particular position(s) declared failure on a date close to the
declaration of failure of elections but not later than thirty (30) days from
the declaration of failure of elections.
First we must understand why a
threshold is established. The reason behind establishing a threshold is to
assure that the results of the elections possess a substantial mandate coming
from the students. It compels the agencies tasked to facilitate the elections
to mobilize and exert effort to encourage students to cast their votes. One may
ask why not peg it to a majority since we abide by such rule of majority. The Directorate
was cautions in anchoring the threshold to such level. Ideally it should be the
case; however, the legislators know all too well the reality of apathy and the greater
risk of repeated failure of election if the bar is set too high. Having this scenario
might permanently damage the confidence and even the relevance of such
exercise. So a safe and practical level is half of the majority. It is not too
low as to devoid those elected with a clear mandate and not too high that it is
well beyond the boundaries of our electoral reality.
Now let us look into the fear of
failure of elections. The conditions for failure of elections only looks into
the percentage of the total student body population who casted their votes whether
for a candidate or for “none”. “None” is incorporated in the 25% because the
law assumes that even though it is not for any particular candidate, it is
still a product of discernment as oppose to those who does not even bother to
proceed to the polling precinct to make official their choice of “none”. A
failure of elections only occurs when these thresholds are not met as
established by law. The only remedy provided for by law is to have another
election not more than thirty days of such declaration of failure of elections.
This would entail another round of expenses and extended work. This is
practically the burden that the authorities are compelled to overthrow by
bolstering all efforts and means to encourage the students to vote.
However, attaining a 25% or 15% voting population saves the
general elections but not necessarily certain lone candidates.
Section 3, Article 2 provides:
Re-election
for the CSG President, CSG Vice-President, and Directorate. If in the case
the lone candidate running for a certain position failed to attain more than
50% of the population of those who voted, a re-election will be done. The
candidate who failed to achieve the quota is unqualified for the re-election.
The next day after the last day of election, ELECOM will then immediately
release COCs for new candidates who want to run for the position. ELECOM will
then set re-election schedules but should not be later than thirty school days
after the last day of election. Eligibility of the new set of candidates will
still be followed as stated in Article X Section 2 of the 2006 XU-CSG
Constitution.
Hence, if 50% voted for none in a lone contest for the
positions of CSG President, VP or College President, then he is miserably
barred from running for re-election for that purpose. The candidate has to get
a simple majority for him to win the position. This then should compel the unopposed
candidates through their party or supporters to not only settle for a single
vote win but for a simple majority win.
We should remember that this exercise is not as simple as it
may seem. We are able to do this because men ages ago spilled their blood for us
to exercise this inherent right to think and decide our destiny as a community.
