VSA replaces elections software, forms ad-hoc committee

Juliana Kiyan News Editor

Following years of problems that have plagued voting in the bi-annual Vassar Student Association (VSA) elections, the Board of Elections has upgraded its voting software in hopes of holding problem-free fall elections. The VSA Council has also formed an Ad-Hoc Committee on Elections (ACE) to oversee the elections process and ensure that it is valid.

Board of Elections Chair Matthew Morse ’07 and Vice-Chair Amory Meltzer ’09 reported that new voting software, written by a professional group in California, has been purchased for VSA elections. The more modern software works specifically with the special VSA voting systems, Instant Runoff Voting (IRV) and Single Transferable Vote (STV).

“Our old voting software, although fantastic, was outdated, and rather prone to bugs and glitches for that reason,” said Morse. The old software had been written a decade ago by Vassar students and the VSA faced continual problems in using it for elections.

Another factor that prompted the upgrade was the hacking of the VSA server in December 2005, which compromised the VSA software and caused concern in Computing and Information Services (CIS) about security. The VSA server has since been moved to CIS where, according to Morse, “it is far more protected from glitches, viruses, and hackers.”

The Board of Elections will perform three trial runs of the software, the first occurring on Sept. 8. Morse plans for the second and third tests to take place on Sept. 15 and Sept. 20, respectively. The tests will vary in levels of complexity and will test the design, compatibility, and integration of the software.

For fall elections, the Board of Elections plans to assemble a webpage that will show the positions available and the type of information required for candidates. Students must file to run by e-mailing relevant information to vsaelections@vassar.edu. After the filing period ends, the candidates and their statements will appear on a regulary updated website.

In light of the past elections problems, the VSA Council unanimously passed a resolution to form ACE at its Sept. 3 meeting. The resolution stated that its formation was in part because “student self-government depends on a reliable and transparent elections process” and “the process of elections has not been reviewed or significantly revised in recent memory.”

VSA Vice President Lilian Ho ’07 will serve as ACE’s non-voting chair. “Specifically, the Committee will look at whether or not the process [of elections] is effective and efficient, and if our elections are fair and democratic,” said Ho. “Within the constitution and bylaws are specific guidelines that need to be followed.”

ACE will review the elections process and make recommendations to the Constitutional Review Committee (CRC) and the VSA Council, observe and report on how the fall elections run, and submit a final report to the CRC and Council in December.

Ho said, “With the events that occurred last spring with paper ballots, and even in elections dating back to when I was a freshman, nothing has significantly changed despite the extremely few elections that have gone smoothly in my time here at Vassar. For these reasons, ACE was formed to address issues that may occur in the fall and have occurred.”

The most recent elections malfunction occurred during the spring elections in April 2006. The Council was forced to pass a resolution less than 48 hours before elections that switched from online voting to paper ballots. Earlier test elections on the software showed that it was not guaranteed to work accurately for the actual election. The last-minute change forced the VSA Executive Board, Council members not running for the election, and the Board of Elections to count the ballots by hand.

After results were announced, two students challenged the validity of the election results and moved to indict the two Board of Elections chairs for dereliction of duty. The motion failed.

Filing for open positions runs from Sept. 13-Sept. 20, and the campaigning period will last from Sept. 21-Sept. 25. Voting will begin at 8 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 25 and last 24 hours, with results announced on Tuesday, Sept. 26.