SU Elections: Candidate Handbook 2017

During the election period you will have the chance to develop a significant number of skills which, whether you win or lose, will undoubtedly be of value to you in whatever you choose to do for a career. Running an election campaign can involve project management, time management, presentation skills, negotiation skills, leadership, assertiveness, problem solving, creativity, personal discipline, and a whole host of other key skills. How much you take advantage of this opportunity is up to you. It is fact, however, that no candidate has ever won any election purely by just putting themselves forward, no matter how many friends they might think they have. Whether you think you are the hot favourite or have no chance, the reality is that at this stage pretty much everyone is even. It’s all to play for. Good luck, and may the best person win.

We have tried to cover all you need to know about the elections in this guide however, we still haven’t covered everything. If you are unsure on anything or need more information then please ask!

For any elections related enquiries email: studentvoice@su.plymouth.ac.uk

Nominations open

Monday 30th January - Friday 10th February (midday - midday)

Candidates Preparation & Training

Friday 10th - Friday 24th February 2017

Manifesto Deadline Friday 17th February

Minute to Win It Speeches

Friday 24th February (10:30 - 12:00) The SU

Voting open

Friday 24th February - Friday 3rd March (midday - midday)

Results Night

Friday 3rd March (19:00) The SU

All voting is online at www.upsu.com, the voting is run by our website provider MSL. Whilst voting is open UPSU cannot see how many votes each candidate has. Information about how many votes have been cast per position and stats about who has voted will be made available to candidates. Once voting has closed UPSU can access the voting record and calculate which candidate has been elected, this remains confidential until the results are officially announced.

Alternative Vote (AV) and Single Transferable Vote (STV) At UPSU we use voting systems called Alternative Vote (AV) and Single Transferable Vote system (STV). In both AV and STV voters are allowed to number their preferences, so if there are 6 candidates, they may fill in the ballot paper from 1 to 6. When the first votes are counted, if no one has received enough to be the clear winner (50% for elections with only one vacancy) then the person with the least votes is eliminated and the second preferences of all their ballot papers are transferred to the other candidates.

This continues until either there is only one candidate left, or someone exceeds the number of votes needed to be deemed elected. All this means that as a candidate you have the opportunity to get people to vote for you by putting you second, third or even fourth or fifth preference.

The difference between AV and STV is the number of positions available; AV is used when there is only one position e.g.

President and STV is used when there are several vacancies to fill for the same position e.g. Accountability Board Member.

Random order of names The system we are using randomly selects the order each time a paper is generated and even tracks the order so that no candidate appears at the top more than others.

Re-open Nominations (RON) & No Further Preference In all UPSU elections we give the voter the choice to vote for ReOpen Nominations (RON). This means that even positions that only have one real person going for them could still lose to RON. Voters are also able to select No Further Preference once they have selected all the candidates they wish to vote for.

Who can vote?

All students enrolled on a Plymouth University course are eligible to vote, this includes students studying at partner institutions, part time and postgrad courses School Rep Elections - Students are only able to vote for their own School Rep Liberation Forums (LGBT, Women’s, Disability and BAME) - Only students who self-define as being members of these groups are eligible to vote for these positions Partner Institutions Forum Chair - Only those students studying at a partner institution can vote for this position.

Rules for UPSU staff Student Staff are unable to campaign for any candidate whilst on duty. This includes wearing any campaign t-shirts, badges or any other promotional material. Full time staff are unable to participate in any campaign.

RULES for campaigning During the election campaign you are likely to be involved in a series of activities. It is important to remember that during the election campaign you are still bound by sets of rules that, whilst not strictly election rules, still have a bearing on your conduct.

This includes abiding by the Union’s constitution, rules and procedures, University policies and rules and, of course, UK Law!

What is campaigning?

Physical campaigning is not allowed before the start of voting on Friday 24th February, this means no flyers, posters, banners or items of clothing associated with a candidate’s campaign can be displayed before this time. However you are able to research your manifesto, set up your campaigns team, and plan your campaign and generally communicate to others that you are standing either online or face to face.

Where can I campaign?

The legitimate areas for campaigning are those areas within the Students’ Union which will be identified in this handbook. If you wish to campaign in any other Plymouth University building, halls of residence or Partner College you must seek prior permission from the relevant parties. The Student Voice Team can help you identify who you need to contact if you are unsure.

Emails, texting, phone calls, website forums and general use of personal data Legally, you are not permitted to use any personal data you might have access to for any use other than that for which it was originally intended. Examples of this include databases of emails and phone numbers of sports and societies members or course rep email lists.

Budget Executive Officer posts (full-time, paid positions) You can claim back up to £30 on production of valid receipts for campaigns materials. You may spend up to £40 of your own money.

Forum Chairs, UEC Chair and Accountability Board Chair & Members (part-time, unpaid roles) You can claim back up to £10 on production of valid receipts for campaigns materials. You may spend up to £10 of your own money It is not necessary to spend a lot on your campaign, many students have run successful campaigns without spending anything.

Even if you are just using your own money in the election you must provide a breakdown of what you have spent, this can be emailed to the elections team or written out and handed in to the Student Voice Department at the close of voting.

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You must account for all materials you use.

You may not accept donations or sponsorship which might be termed a gift.

Anything you use must be a true cost value to your expenses so if you are using materials you already have you must allocate them a realistic value.

UPSU encourage candidates to be as creative as possible within the rules, whilst you need to account for materials used for your campaign publicity such as posters and t-shirts, other nonconsumable items that are easily available to everyone need not be accounted for.

For example, if you decide to bake cakes you will not need to account for buying an oven but will need to declare the cost of ingredients. Please check with the Student Voice Department for clarification if you are unsure.

One exception to this is where you choose to use transport to get around. You may do this at your leisure.

Help with your campaign Anyone who campaigns on your behalf must be a current student of Plymouth University. Please do not try to use lecturers, other University staff, students from other institutions or external associates in your campaign.

Use of upsu: logos and strap lines It is not permitted for you to use any of the UPSU corporate imagery in your campaign, this means you can’t use the UPSU or logo or any of our strap lines. You can however use the ‘run UPSU’ election logo or a club or society logo, we suggest that you ask the committee if this is OK first You may use www.upsu.com in your publicity and we would encourage you to advertise the website as widely as possible.

What happens if you have an issue?

If you have an issue or a question at any time then please let the Student Voice Department know ASAP.

In the case of a formal complaint the Student Voice Department will contact the Returning Officer on your behalf. All complaints relating to other candidates behaviour or the election process must be made before the close of voting. No results will be declared until all issues are resolved. Once the result has been announced no new issues will be heard unless they are in relation to the counting of the vote. In all matters relating to the election the Returning Officer’s decision is final.

Additional needs If you feel that any of the campaigning rules may cause you to be unfairly disadvantaged please discuss this with the Student Voice Department by emailing studentvoice@su.plymouth.ac.uk UPSU will need to be made aware of your potential additional needs as soon as possible.

Building a campaign how are you going to reach...

The first steps: 1. make sure you know how the process works It’s crucial that you fully understand the Elections process, the rules and key dates before building your campaign. By ensuring this early on you can start planning with confidence that you’re adhering to the rules and won’t run into trouble later on.

2. ask yourself “why am i standing?”

Before jumping into creating posters and flyers make sure that you take some time to think exactly why you are standing. If you are clear in your reasoning it will make it easier to communicate this to potential voters.

3. think about who it is that you will be representing Representatives are elected to represent University of Plymouth students - simple, right? No. The student body is vast and diverse. Make sure that you try and consider the views of as many different groups of students as possible.

once you’ve got the basics covered you’re ready to move on to building your campaign...

Are you looking to change something that you feel isn’t working? Do you want to try and create something completely new? Try making a list of all the things you’d ideally like to achieve and then prioritise them. Think about whether or not these things are realistic and eliminate those that aren’t.

Select three from your list that you feel are the most important. This is a great way of condensing your aims and making it clear to yourself and to potential voters.

Make a clear campaigning strategy outlining your aims, objectives and tactics.

For example: Aim Get elected Objectives Talk to 100 students, reach 50 students through social media Tactics Hand out 100 leaflets around campus, set up a Facebook/Twitter page

Here are just a few ideas for ways that you can appeal to as many students as possible. There’s no right or wrong way to campaign and definitely don’t feel restricted to stick to this list.

Most importantly, remember to stay inside your budget!

Banners

Using big banners can make your campaign a talking point. Think about the busiest spots on campus and where you think most students will see your materials.

Remember to ask permission from Estates before putting these banners up and don’t put them up before voting opens!

Leaflets

Handing over a leaflet is a great way to start a conversation.

Introduce yourself clearly, stating your name and the position you’re running for. The leaflet will act as a reminder of what you have said in person.

Stickers

Why not consider handing out stickers? For every sticker you hand out that’ll be one more person walking around campus wearing your campaign material. Shop around for the best price!

Please stick them on people not on surfaces around campus.

T-Shirts

By creating t-shirts for yourself and your campaign team you can make yourself easily identifiable on campus. You could think about attending busy club nights with your campaign team wearing them. Iron-on transfers or paint are a good way of creating cheap yet effective t-shirts.

songs

Try to think outside the box - write a song - make it catchy and get people talking about your campaign!

Facebook

Whilst you can use your personal account to promote yourself it might be a good idea to create a separate fan page for your campaign. This will give you a bit more privacy and enable you to solely focus on campaigning. Promote your campaign by adapting your poster into a Facebook cover photo - the size of which should be 851 x 315 pixels, profile pictures work best at 180 x 180 pixels.

The Beginner’s Guide to Facebook:

goo.gl/VHevkl

Twitter

Consider creating a hashtag for your campaign, make it short, snappy and memorable. This will help you start a conversation about your campaign. Make those 140 characters count!

Personalise your Twitter banner - 1500 x 500 pixels.

The Beginner’s Guide to Twitter:

goo.gl/0gh0hb

Instagram

Photos are a great way of immediately catching someones attention. Keep a visual log of your campaigning jour ney and show potential voters what you are getting up to!

The Beginner’s Guide to Instagram:

goo.gl/uUbfhw

Youtube

By producing a video you can perfect your pitch and make it available to watch again and again. You don’t need to be an expert to upload a video to Youtube - you can even film it on your phone.

The Beginner’s Guide to Youtube:

goo.gl/CNmKhQ

Poster bannersites sites in the SU poster andandbanner In the SU.

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Hall to the Hive, all walls except Officers wall.

Wood cladded DJ booth

SU: plastic lettering only

Green booths, inside and out

All glass balustrades, both sides.

Wooden fencing on the SU slope. Perfect for banners.

Railings above the SU. Not covering the SU: lettering.

Perfect for banners.

Where to promote on campus

where can i promote on campus?

UPSU Elections 2015 Campaigning on campus

Do not campaign in these areas

DO Know what makes you unique – why should people vote for you over others?

Be innovative in your campaigning! Think outside the box. Loud and creative campaign stunts can generate a lot of votes.

Promote yourself on social media.

Enjoy the election! Take time to look back on what you have achieved and feel proud of yourself.

Don’t

Campaign in the SU, around campus and in partner nightclubs.

Campaign physically before voting opens – this includes posters, banners, badges, flyers, t-shirts, stalls.

Ask permission to put up promotional material outside of the SU.

Campaign in the Hive, toilets, Library or any open access computer area.

Stick to your budget and keep receipts.

Use the UPSU logo or strapline in your campaign – but you can use the Run UPSU logo.

Allocate items you have a realistic value and account for them in your finances.

Tidy up once you have finished campaigning.

Ensure your campaign team know the rules – you will be accountable for their actions.

Research and plan your campaign and organise your campaigns team before voting opens.

Ask people to vote for you via email or text.

Put posters up on painted surfaces in the SU. You can put posters up on any other surfaces eg glass, acrylics etc.