EVERYTHING you wanted to know about
GETTING ELECTED
Timeline Nominations Open (9th February)
You can now submit your nomination form to a EUSA reception and officially start you campaign.
Printing Opens (9th February)
Providing you have submitted a nomination form you will have access to your printing budget and be able to start ordering publicity.
Nominations Close (19th February, 12 noon)
Ensure you have submitted your nomination form and photo by now.
Election Statement Deadline (23rd February, 12 noon)
Make sure you have submitted your election statement online at eusa.ed.ac.uk/elections.
Last Printing Orders (26th February, 4pm)
This is the last date on which you can order printed publicity from your budget.
Multiple Candidacy Letter Deadline (3rd March, 5pm) If you are standing for more than one position on a committee, get your order of preference to the returning officer.
Elections Debate (3rd March, 7.30pm)
A night of election hustings for the sabbatical candidates.
Pollock Door Knocking Day (1st March, 3pm-6pm)
You can go door knocking in Pollock on this day between 3pm and 6pm.
Pollock Door Knocking Days (2nd to 5th March, 6.30pm-8.30pm)
You can go door knocking in Pollock on these days between 6.30pm and 8.30pm.
Election Opens (4th March, 9am)
Head to Teviot Debating Hall to find out who has been elected.
Election Count (5th March, 7pm)
Head to Teviot Debating Hall to find out who has been elected.
Cleanup Deadline (9th March, 9am)
If you have put up posters on lampposts or railings then they need to be down, or you’ll pay a fine.
The Elections EUSA is run by students, for students. This means that we have elections to decide who will be on our committees. Most students have never stood in an election before. Because of this, we thought it would be a good idea to give you some tips on what it involves. In the past, generations of student activists have passed down tips to their preferred candidates. Here, we have collected some of that advice, removed the bullshit, and condensed it into a short but sweet election guide. Enjoy.
Returning Off icer The returning officer is responsible for administering the elections and ensuring candidates are following the election regulations. The EUSA Chief Executive is the returning officer and is aided by an Assistant Returning Officer. From here on in where the Returning Officer is referred to it includes the Assistant Returning Officer.
Questions
No one other than the returning officer can give you advice on the election regulations and their interpretation. Many people will have their view or ideas on what is acceptable within the regulations, however if you fall foul of the rules then you cannot fall back on their advice as a defence.
Discipline
The returning officer is responsible for enforcing the election regulations. Should you breach the election regulations it is up to the Returning Officer to make a ruling on any sanctions. Disciplinary action can be anything ranging from a reduction in publicity budget, to having voting for yourself suspended up to disqualifications from the elections.
Appeals
Any disciplinary decisions taken by the returning officer can be appealed and the decisions will be reviewed by the Elections Appeals Committee, which is made up of two of the EUSA Sabbatical Officers and a few people from the University.
Before it kicks off The majority of work will happen in the fortnight before elections, but you need to make sure you are ready to run and know what you are doing before handing in your nomination form.
What to run for
Choosing which position to run for is just about the most important decision you will make in the election. Although the elections might be the highest profile part of the role, it’s what you do over the subsequent 12 months that makes the real difference. Make sure you do your research in advance, in this guide and through www. eusa.ed.ac.uk/elections to identify the role that suits you. You can stand for more than one position and hedge your bets, helping you to get
a seat on SRC even if it’s not for your first choice position.
Asking questions
The opportunity profiles available on-line give a pretty good explanation of the roles, but nothing can beat talking through the role with a real person. There are always people more than happy to answer questions about any of the roles and there are three key ways to get in touch with them:
1. Look out for the Election Roadshows in KB House, Potterrow and Pollock Halls once nominations open. 2. Use the contact forms at eusa.ed.ac.uk/contact to get in touch with EUSA reception, they will find the best person to answer your questions. 3. Pop into the EUSA office in Potterrow and make an appointment to see one of the Sabbatical Officers.
Tell your friends
Your friends are an invaluable asset during the election and will come in handy at just about every stage. So let them know you are standing, get their ideas and advice, get them excited about helping you. It is always easier if you have other
people supporting you, so make them feel part of your campaign right from the start.
Start Planning
Different positions require different amounts of work and different amounts of planning. Have a read through the rest of the guide and identify everything you will need to do in the weeks running up to the elections. That includes looking up academic deadlines, holidays or anything else that takes up your time. Things will be a lot easier if you work out when stuff needs to happen and organise your time in advance.
Positions up for grabs Student Representative Council (SRC) SRC School Reps School reps form the backbone of the SRC, they are the key link in communicating students views on a school level, up through SRC and to the university. Taking their experiences and listening to their peers to identify problems then driving solutions throughout the university. SRC Members There are many positions available that improve the student experience in areas including accommodation, student finance, ensuring equal opportunities and enhancing student services
around campus. The roles tackle issues affecting student within the university, in the local area and parliament from Holyrood to Westminster. SRC Convenors SRC is made up of a few sub-committees to try and help focus everyone’s ideas. Each committee has a convenor, so one for Academic Services, Welfare, Teaching & Learning and External issues. These individuals chair the committees, channel everyone’s problems and solutions into an effective campaign that makes a difference and solves the problem.
Committee of Management (Com) Union Exec These five roles are there to ensure the union is delivering for students; they work with managers throughout the EUSA to improve services for students. The roles are split, with one officer focussing on Shops, Catering, Bars, Entertainment and Ethics & Environment. Ordinary Members The ordinary members work with the members of Union Exec to define a vision for what difference the Union should be making on the student experience. Then following it through to ensure that the permanent management staff within the union are securing that vision.
Societies Societies Convenor This role chairs the Societies Executive, which is made up of leaders from across many societies. The Convenor is key in pushing for improved society facilities and resources from EUSA and the university. Societies Secretary Provides support to the convenor, helping students wanting to set up new societies and organising big profiling opportunities like the Societies Fair during Freshers’ Week. Societies Treasurer Doesn’t have to actually organise every societies’ accounts but helps give support to society treasurers and helps societies secure outside funding.
Finance Committee Most of these positions are filled by students elected from other committees, however there are three ordinary student positions available in the elections. Finance Committee oversees the finances of the organisation and acts as the board of trustees, ensuring that all parts of the organisation are using their resources effectively to deliver for students. The Finance Committee are also the board of directors for EUSA’s spin off trading company EUSA Co. NUS Delegates EUSA is a highly active member of the National Union of Students (NUS) within Scotland and the whole UK. The focal point of this involvement is at national conferences, to which
we send a delegation of students to represent EUSA Delegates are responsible for representing the views of students as defined by the highest student decision making body, the SRC.
Sabbaticals The sabbaticals are four elected students who take a year out of their degrees to work full time to improve the student experience. Each sabbatical has a specific remit and set of issues to tackle, but they are also collectively responsible for ensuring that EUSA as an organisation is developing to meet the future needs of students. President The figurehead of EUSA and the main point of contact with the world outside of the
university. The role is involved in everything that EUSA does, but particularly focuses on tackling student issues outside of the university from funding to accommodation. It is important to remember that the president is not in charge of EUSA and is not the boss of the other sabbaticals. Vice-President Services (VPS) The VPS remit covers the student unions, ensuring that the buildings we have and the services we operate are run for students. The role provides a constant student voice within the unions, driving through changes and improvements that the student need and demand. The VPS is also responsible for overseeing the finances of the whole of EUSA.
Vice-President Academic Affairs (VPAA) The VPAA has a very busy role, always out and about round the university, working directly with university staff to improve the quality of teaching and academic facilities. The role can make a massive impact on students, acting as the student voice driving issues right into the heart of the university. Vice-President Societies and Activities (VPSA) The VPSA has a sometimes difficult split in their remit between societies and student welfare. They are the sabbatical officer responsible for ensuring EUSA provides effective support to over 200 student societies which can be enough in itself. The role is also responsible for representing students on welfare issues to the university and leading welfare campaigns across campus.
Manifesto Your manifesto sets out what you want to achieve should you be elected. It will be presented in different formats on posters, website and in your election address. Having an idea of your objectives for the year are important in winning votes, but can also help drive you to make an impact in the year to come.
Research
A detailed knowledge of the internal working of EUSA and the University is not necessary to get elected, or to do an excellent job later in the year. However it is important that you have an understanding of the issues effecting students in relation to the role. This can come from your personal experience, but make sure you speak to as many of your friends as possible to share ideas and experiences and to help give you a clearer picture of what students really care about.
Pulling it together
Before working on printed publicity, canvassing round campus or starting lecture announcements, you need to know why you are standing and what difference you want to make to the student experience of your electorate. You need to work out the best way to present this, whether you need a thesis up on you website or a yer with just three key points. At some point you need to sit down pull together all your ideas and all the conversations you have had with students to develop a clear vision for your year ahead.
Election Statement Many people regard this as the most important piece of publicity you have, your election statement appears alongside your photo on the election site and may be the last thing people see before they vote.
Submission
You submit your election statement online, by following the links from eusa.ed.ac.uk/elections. Your statement is submitted through an online form and you are quite restricted in how to format the text. The deadline for submitting your statement can be found on the election timeline, after the deadline you will not be able to modify the content or formatting of your election address.
Content
Your statement is your key opportunity to explain who you are, why you are standing and what you want to achieve. Each position has a different maximum word limit, which will force you to keep your statement short and to the point. You must consider what will persuade people to vote for you, not just what you say, but how you say it. Most people devote their space to talking about what they want to achieve, rather than about themselves.
Style & Format
People will be reading a lot of election statements and will possibly just flick through them as time wears on. So you need to think about how you present your statement, do you want big blocks of text or snappy bullet points. You need to think about how simple tools like the bold and italic buttons can grab attention. Don’t be afraid to be original and don’t be afraid to copy others, you can view election statements from years gone by at eusa.ed.ac. uk/elections and get some ideas on the best way to style yours.
Word Limits Position
Wds
President, VPS, VPSA, VPAA
450
Societies Convenor, SRC Executive and Union Executive
225
Finance Committee, Committee of Management, SRC Officers, NUS Delegate
150
All Other Candidates
100
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s n o i t c e l e / k u .
Printed Publicity Nominations open and the university morphs into a forest of smiling faces on brightly coloured paper, heralding the on set of election season.
The Budget
Printing publicity costs money, which would mean some richer candidates could afford a massive full body shot banner covering the whole height of Appleton Tower whilst other just a few flyers. So all candidates have a limited budget funded by EUSA, the size of which depends on the position you are running for, not your bank balance.
To keep track of the budget, all printing has to be ordered through the EUSA office in Potterrow and printing is arranged by EUSA. If you do any printing that doesn’t go through EUSA channels then you will be sanctioned by the Returning Officer, with the maximum sanction being disqualification from the elections.
Design
There isn’t a set route to success on what works design wise. You need to consider what message you are trying to get across, how you are going to present yourself and your ideas in a way that will encourage people to pay attention
and ultimately vote for you. Remember that as the elections draw closer students will start to switch off to the mass of posters and flyers around them. So don’t rely solely on printed publicity and make sure what you produce stands out. At the very least you have to include your name and the position you are standing for, due to common sense and the election regulations. One big (or small) decision to make is over the size of poster or flyer you go for. You only have so much money for publicity and potentially 25,000 students to reach. The bigger your material the more it costs and the less you have. You can hand out A5 leaflets, but they won’t last as long as getting A6 or A7 (or even smaller). At the opposite end you can economise with A4 posters rather than A3, but then you need to balance the design to ensure you have the same visual impact in a smaller area.
Posters (A4 & A3 size)
Not everyone is allowed to print posters, only candidates running for a Sabbatical position, SRC Exec, Union Exec or as Societies Convenor. This is simply because the local area can only accommodate so many posters at one time. They can be put on notice boards and hoardings around the campuses. Poster can also be pasted onto cardboard and tied to lampposts. If you plan on taking the cardboard option then you can try local shops and scavenge cardboard boxes
they are going to throw out or recycle, but don’t leave it until the last moment as it can take time. There are only certain areas around campus that you can place posters on lampposts and railing, so check the map in the full election regulations first. Top Tip: Make sure you’ve got a warm coat and gloves, tie-ing up posters outside takes time and gets cold.
Flyers
Everyone apart from School Council candidates is allowed flyers, which can range in size from A5 down as small as you want. Encompassing everything from traditional flyers right to little strips with just your name and position you are running for. Once you get down to little strip sizes there is not a lot of flexibility with regard content, as any publicity must have your name and position as a bare minimum, inevitably taking up most of the space. As you get into the larger sizes you can choose any range of content from snappy slogan to a more text dense fully fledged manifesto.
Budgets Position
£
Allowances
President, VPS, VPSA, VPAA
110
Posters, Leaflets
Societies Convenor, SRC Executive and Union Executive
30
Posters, Leaflets
Finance Committee, Committee of Management, SRC Officers, NUS Delegate
15
Leaflets
Societies Council, Other SRC positions
8
Leaflets
School Council Positions
0
No Allowance
Speak to people Despite an ever increasing number of way to communicate with students, the results show that the candidates who get out their and speak to people win votes. That can be you on your own, with one or two friends or a huge campaign team. Chatting to people around the unions, in the street, through lecture announcements or knocking on doors throughout University accommodation.
Lecture Announcements Where Work out where you are going. Sometimes it’s easier to just go to somewhere there are lots of lecture theatres – David Hume Tower, Appleton Tower, or JCMB, and find one with people in it. You may want to look up time tables, but this can be more bother than it’s worth. Before the announcement When you arrive, ask the lecturer if they mind if you do it. They are normally fine with it, although some will ask what it’s about. If they say no, politely leave and run to the next theatre – you might get there in time to do that one instead.
The announcement Keep it short and simple. Look up at the people in front of you, and imagine you are speaking to the people in the back row. This will help you be loud enough. Speak slowly and clearly. Keep it brief and to the point. Say your name and the position you are running for at least twice – remember, your name is the one thing they have to get. If they don’t get that, there is no point in telling them anything else. Think about your rhythm. If you end on a triplet, you should get a round of applause. A good lecture announcement can get a laugh, applause and a key message across in less than a minute.
Random Approaching This is best done in cafes etc around campus. Start by saying something like, ‘do you mind if I pester you for a second?’. Once you have got them, introduce yourself to each of them – ideally shaking their hand and getting their name. You have to gauge how chatty they are. Some people are busy and only want to hear your key message. Others will want a bit of a chat and to get to know you. However long it takes, don’t just talk at them, people zone out very easily. Make sure it’s a conversation.
Door Knocking Where
You can of course knock on anyone’s door around the city, but to guarantee you are hitting students it’s advisable to hit university halls and flats. That in itself is almost every first year, plus extras, so a lot of doors, a lot of time and a very sore throat. You need to develop a plan, identify all the blocks of accommodation around the city, which you are going to hit and when (and how many times). You can get a city map with all the university accommodation from the Accommodation Services website at www.accom. ed.ac.uk
When
You can visit flats pretty much anytime, before the elections just be considerate of the residents so not too
early in the morning or too late at night. You also need to consider when people will actually be in, think about lecture times and the day of the week. Door knocking in Pollock is far more restrictive and is nailed down to just a few hours on a restricted number of days, check the election regulations to clarify when these are.
How to get in
Flats have buzzers. Press the button and wait for someone to reply. If no one does, try the next one, and so on. Often people don’t ask who you are, and just buzz the door open. Sometimes they will ask – if you say ‘it’s about the students’ association elections’ they will normally let you in. If it’s in Pollock, you just have to wait for someone to let you in.
What to say
Again, introduce yourself and ask if there are any flatmates in. Make sure you have your key messages and that you get them across. Give them a leaflet. You have to gauge how long you are going to talk to people. Some will appreciate a bit of a chat. Others want you to be brief. Remember, they will only really remember one thing that you tell them, to make sure you choose your message.
Other Publicity Website
These days almost everyone has some form of website for their campaign, although how important they are is unclear. Having lots of information can satisfy the curiosity of the more interested voters, however most people will not have the time to examine everyone’s website in detail. Just like a flyer or poster you need to excite people about your campaign immediately and not expect them to read everything in detail. Not many people have the knowledge to code a website from scratch, but there are two solutions. 1. Find a friend who can – make sure they are good enough and that they can
meet the deadlines you need. If you friend an do the design side they should be able to give you some advice on where to host the site too. 2. There are some free brilliant sites such as Moonfruit.com which allow you to build a website using an interface similar to Microsoft Word. With a bit of an eye for design and enough time you can produce some excellent sites.
Videos
Videos are a pretty new addition to the election arsenal; you can now embed a video next to your election address for people to see whilst voting. The use of videos is
fairly uncharted and there aren’t any firm guidelines on what works and what doesn’t. Key points to remember are that people will not want to spend a few minutes hanging around whilst voting to watch everyone’s video and a lot of people will vote in Microlabs where there isn’t usually any sound.
An election Facebook group has become a staple of any election campaign and takes relatively little effort to set up. The first group of people you need to get voting for you are your friends, so an invite to your Facebook group can be a good reminder. There are many more features on Facebook to tap
into including applications, fan pages or integration with your election website, plus many more. There have been a few forays into these newer features, however once again this is fairly uncharted territory.
T-Shirts
Sabbatical candidates are allowed to buy a limited number of t-shirts out of their own money. You will get transfers from the EUSA office upon handing in your nomination form, which you can run through an inkjet printer then iron the design onto the t-shirt. Alternatives are plain old paint or a spray can. T-shirts help create a strong visual presence and create a link between all your different campaigners.
The Elections Every candidate should be ready for an election campaign and be ready to prove themselves as the best candidate to the student body. However if only one person stands for a position they are returned unopposed automatically.
How To Vote
All voting is done online and accessible day and night whilst the polls are open. The voting system has been specially built to work at Edinburgh University and links in directly to every student’s university computer account. During polling days links through to the elections get a top spot on MyEd and the EUSA website, plus candidates usually put a prominent link on their websites to direct people through.
Students can vote for as many or as few positions as they want and can go back and change their vote up until the close of polls. The vote is done using a Transferable Vote system, which means you can rank all of the candidates in your order of preference.
this works can be found in the EUSA constitution. The key thing is that even if someone doesn’t want to put you as there first choice, you still want to persuade them to list you later on in their rankings as there vote could still clinch you a victory.
Transferable Vote
Multiple Candidacies
In any EUSA election you rank candidates in order of preference. You obviously have to put down a first choice and can then rank as many or as few further candidates as you want. This basically means that if you first choice doesn’t get through, then your vote switches to supporting your second choice candidate and so on until all your rankings have run out. The full gory details of how all
You can stand for as many or as few positions as you want to, but you can only hold one seat on each committee. So you could stand in the elections for every position on the
Committee of Management, but you only get to take up one seat. Prior to the elections you must hand in a letter to the returning officer, putting the positions you have stood for in order of preference. Then the returning officer will try and ensure that you get elected to the position the highest up your ranking when the results pour in.
Edinburgh University Students’ Association Potterrow 5/2 Bristo Square Edinburgh, EH8 9AL Tel: 0131 650 2656 Fax: 0131 668 4177 Email: eusa.enquiry@ed.ac.uk Website: www.eusa.ed.ac.uk EUSA is a Registered Scottish Charity (No. SCO15800)