Mitchel Hamline Student Bar Association

Fall 2021 SBA Elections Packet

Nomination Petition Form

The Mitchell Hamline Student Bar Association will be holding their Fall 2021 Elections and looking for law students who are interested in getting involved and becoming student leaders.

Recognizing the diverse backgrounds and experiences of the student body, the Student Bar Association (SBA) aspires to represent each unique student. To accomplish this goal, the SBA listens to the problems and concerns accompanying each student and advocates the pertinent issues to crucial decision makers. The SBA Supports and promotes diverse student organizations to supplement education, professional growth, and socialization. Hosting annual social events, the SBA promotes friendship and professional relationships.

If you are interested in getting involved and running for a position on within the Student Bar Association, please review the information provided in this Election Packet.

If you would like to know more about the Student Bar Association, you can contact any of the SBA Executive Board members. Questions specifically about the elections should be directed to the SBA Elections Chair by email at sba.elections@mitchellhamline.edu

2021-2022 Board of Governors

• President: Daré Sims

• Vice President: Martha Johnson

• Treasurer: Kayla Ladson

• Secretary: Paola Maldonado-Nunez

• Representative At-Large: Nicole Knight-Schrupp

• ABA Representative: Jennifer Drysdale

Important Dates and Election Timeline

Petition dues………………………………………11:59 PM (CST), Monday, September 13, 2021

Spring Elections Voting opens……………………...……………Wednesday, September 15, 2021

Spring Elections Voting closes……………………...11:59 PM CST, Monday, September 22, 2021

Run-off election voting opens (if needed) …………………………...Tuesday, September 23, 2021

Run-off election voting closed (if needed) …………………………...1:59 PM September 30, 2021

Election results announced

No run-off election required………………………………………...…September 23, 2021

Run-off election required………………………………………………September 30, 2021

Process for Submitting Candidate Petition

1) Read and review all rules and expectations

2) Determine Board position interests you (Petition can only be submitted for 1 position)

3) Create Election Ballot Signature Survey form using Microsoft Forms.

a. Obtain required number of signatures (See Instructions below)

b. Students can utilize docket to share link to Ballot Signature Survey.

4) Review and Sign Acknowledge of Dues Form

5) Complete Petition form including candidate statement and results from Signature Survey.

6) Submit form to SBA Elections Chair by submission by September 13, 2021

For any questions related the SBA Elections or the Candidate Petition Process, please email the SBA Election Chair at sba.elections@mitchellhamline.edu.

Fall 2021 Open SBA Positions

1L Section Representatives

1L Section Representatives are voting members of the Board and represent the needs and interests of members of their respective 1Lsection. Responsibilities include holding Section Meetings at least once per semester, attending all SBA Board Meetings, and appropriately communicating information and policies to their respective Section members. Additionally, each elected representative of the Board shall work toward identifying problems of particular concern or interest to the representative’s constituents and are responsible for pursuing those problems with the Board and/or the Mitchell Hamline School of Law (“MHSL”) faculty and administration. Each Class Rep shall serve on one (1) or more SBA committees and will assist in projects sponsored by the SBA.

Class Rep (2L, 3L, 4L)

Class Reps are voting members of the Board and represent the needs and interests of members of their respective class or section. Responsibilities include holding Class Meetings at least once per semester, attending all SBA Board Meetings, and appropriately communicating information and policies to their respective Class members. Additionally, each elected representative of the Board shall work toward identifying problems of particular concern or interest to the representative’s constituents and are responsible for pursuing those problems with the Board and/or the Mitchell Hamline School of Law (“MHSL”) faculty and administration. Each Class Rep shall serve on one (1) or more SBA committees and will assist in projects sponsored by the SBA.

Judicial Council

The purpose of the Judicial Council is to interpret the meanings of the SBA Constitution, and Bylaws and investigate any allegations of mid-conduct or violations as it relates to the Constitution and By-Laws. The Judicial council is made up of three judges who are non-SBA Board elected representatives.

General Election Rules a. The General Election shall be conducted electronically, with at least one weekend day

and two adjacent weekdays.

b. These rules are to be enforced upon all candidates, and those engaging in campaign activity from their publishing date.

c. Candidates may campaign during the “Election Period.” The “Election Period” means the period of during which the election is taking place.

d. No candidates may campaign in any classroom whether before, during, or after the class period. This includes unspoken campaigning, such as buttons and tee-shirts. Candidates may campaign in the lobby areas outside the classrooms.

e. Candidates shall be held responsible for the behavior of any one in their campaign organization as determined by the Election Committee.

f. Candidates shall abide by the following campaign posting policy.

i. No campaign literature, posters, or any other form of advertisement from a Presidential team or Representative candidate may be posted anywhere on campus prior to receipt of a confirmation from the election committee that all requirements for appearing on the ballot have been completed.

1. No literature, posters, or any other form of advertisement will be allowed to be posted on any wall of MHSL with the lone exception of the SBA Bulletin Boards located adjacent to the cafeteria. Candidates who would like an advertisement posted but are unable to do so they may send their advertisement to the SBA President, and they will post it.

ii. Each candidate or candidate team is expressly responsible for the removal of their campaign material, and the failure to remove this material shall be considered a breach of campaign rules.

iii. Flyers, banners, brochures, etc. may be posted on Mitchell Hamline School of Law but are subject to the Student Handbook posting policy.

iv. Chalk and/or other substances will not be permitted on the exterior or interior walls of buildings.

v. Candidates shall have the opportunity to submit a candidacy statement that will be electronically mailed to students upon the opening of the balloting period. Any other targeted electronic mail contact by candidates to students in any form is strictly prohibited.

vi. Social media posting of campaign material within MHSL administered Facebook pages shall be done solely by the Dean of Students and shall be limited to links to external campaign pages. All other posting of campaign material within MHSL administered Facebook pages is strictly prohibited.

vii. Candidates are encouraged to create their own web pages or social media accounts for their candidacy in accordance with these rules and the Student Handbook.

viii. Campaign materials shall not contain depictions of guns or other violence, drugs, alcohol, or other substances, and shall not directly or indirectly threaten any current or former student.

ix. Candidates shall not advertise their campaigns inside the Student Leadership Office nor on the outside of the walls of the Student Leadership Office.

x. Candidates are responsible for removing all campaign materials within twenty-four (24) hours following the notification of election results.

1. Other sanctions deemed necessary by the Election Committee, including forfeiture of candidacy, will be enforced for any Candidate who does not remove campaign materials.

xi. Absolutely no campaigning through campus mail, law school boxes, law monitors, or broadcast voicemail will be allowed.

g. The Election Commissioner shall be the arbitrator of all penalties extolled on candidates that have been found to be in violation of these rules. The Election Commissioner’s discretion as to what remedy, and/or punishment to be provided or extolled shall be unlimited, up to and including the disqualification of a candidate.

Candidates are expected to behave ethically and professionally at all times and shall not interfere with the campaign activities of any other candidate. The Election Committee will review unethical behavior or interference upon written complaint. Violations include, but are not limited to monopolization of space, covering, or defaming of any other candidates' posters, insulting, or defaming other candidates, and harassment or misconduct towards any election officials or voters. Penalty for misconduct may result in forfeiture of candidacy.

Eligible Voters

a. Any student who has paid the SBA student fee for the current year shall be eligible to vote in the election.

i. No proxy ballots will be made available for the election.

Official Ballots

a. Official ballots will be distributed electronically by the MHSL administration on the day the election period opens.

b. The position of names on the ballot shall be determined alphabetically.

c. Write-in votes are valid votes if, and only if, the person or candidate team for which the vote is cast meets the membership and eligibility requirements as determined by the Student Bar Association Constitution and By-Laws. In the Presidential/Vice Presidential race, the write-in team(s) will be ranked in the same manner as recognized teams and votes formal teams will be considered in accordance with all applicable rules and procedures of these By-Laws.

d. All candidates may request a recount in all elections.

e. No officially recognized candidate may be present when votes are counted.

Petition Information and Forms: Board of Governors Positions

Board of Governors Positions Eligibility and Rules

a. All current members in good standing are eligible for election to the SBA provided: i. The member does not anticipate vacating their position prior to the expiration of

their term of office. ii. The member has no reason to believe that they will be unable to fulfill the duties

of the office.

b. All applications for elective offices shall be evaluated by the Election Committee chair to ensure that the candidates meet the requirements set forth in the SBA Constitution. Those applicants who do not fulfill the said requirements will neither be placed on the ballot nor eligible to hold the office in question.

c. Students may only run for one (1) position during the election.

d. Only official petitions, as distributed by the Election Committee, may be used. The Election Committee will establish deadlines for the return of petitions. No petitions will be accepted after the deadline without prior written approval of the Election Committee. The Election Committee may extend the petition deadline as necessary.

e. Due to the COVID-19 crisis, all petitions must be created using the Microsoft Forms application and electronically signed. Each student signing a candidate petition must have a valid Mitchell Hamline email address in order to sign a petition.

f. Potential candidates may request at any time from the Election Commissioner the following information:

i. Announcement of all dates pertaining to the election. ii. Announcement of all election rules.

iii. Announcement of the members and chair of the Election Committee, Board of Governors, and pertinent contact information.

iv. Announcement of the date(s) and location of the election.

g. Once the deadline for petitions is reached, an official list of candidates shall be posted either on the Student Bar Association website, on the Docket, or made available at request.

h. Rights of official candidate:

i.

ii.

iii.

Platforms may be distributed and posted in accordance with the Student Handbook posting rules. Candidate shall not run campaign activities from within the Student Leadership Office. Candidate may participate in the Student Bar Association sponsored candidate forum.

iv. Candidate must abide by all guidelines established by the By-Laws and by the Election Committee.

Eligibility Requirements of Representative Candidates

a. Class representatives must meet the following criteria for the position they are seeking.

i. First Year Representative candidates must meet at least one of the following requirements:

1. Mitchell Hamline School of Law must be the first law school that the student has been enrolled in after graduation of college, regardless of current credit status; or

2. If the student has attended another law school, the student must have under 31.99 credits with the other law school as reported by the office of the registrar.

ii. 2L and 3L representative candidates must run for the class that they will have earned credit by the first semester of the academic year in which they begin their term as representative.

b. All applications for elective offices shall be evaluated by the Election Committee chair to ensure that the candidates meet the requirements set forth in the SBA Constitution. Those applicants who do not fulfill the said requirements will neither be placed on the ballot nor eligible to hold the office in question.

c. Students may only run for one (1) position during the election.

SBA Board of Governors Acknowledgement of Duties Form

Nomination Submission Deadline

Email a copy of the completed petition using the SBA Election Email Address no later than Monday September 10th at 11:59 PM.

**Voting opens September 13th & closes at 11:59am (central time) on September 22nd**

Signatures

• 1L Section Reps Candidates: 10 signatures from their respective section. • 2L, 3L, 4L: 15 signatures are required for any candidate, including representative, and

Judicial Council application (ex: 3L PT requires15 from their respective section). • Due to Covid-19 all signatures must be collected electronically using Microsoft Forms.

In- person signatures will not be accepted. Each student signing a candidate petition must have a valid Mitchell Hamline email address in order to sign a petition.

• Signatures must be from the respective cohort or year and section (ex: signatures for 3L PT rep can only be from students who will be 3L PT students in the 2021–2022years).

Acknowledgement of Duties

Submission of this form serves as acknowledgement and acceptance of the following duties:

• Attendance at meetings is required. Absences require notice to the President or Secretary. Two absences without notification automatically subjects the member to SBA Board review and potential removal. Three unexcused absences will result in automatic removal.

• Each SBA Board member will appropriately communicate information and policies to the member’s constituents. Additionally, each SBA Board member shall work toward identifying problems of particular concern or interest to the member’s constituents and are responsible for pursuing those problems with the SBA Board and/or the Law School’s administration and faculty.

• Each SBA Board member shall serve on one or more SBA committees and will assist in projects sponsored by the SBA.

• Each new SBA Board member shall read the SBA Constitution and SBA Bylaws before the SBA Board member’s first SBA Board or committee meeting.

Please print, sign, and date stating that you have fully understand and will comply with the election rules and fulfill my duties if elected:

Student Campaigning for SBA Governing Position

Candidates Full Name: ________________________________________

Signature: __________________________________________________ Date:____________

SBA Governing Board Candidate Nomination Form

Candidates Full Name: __________________________________________________

Current Year: Section:

Please select up to one position you would like to campaign for:

o 1L Section Representative

o 2L Day Representative (2 seats)

o 2L Evening Representative

o 2L EJD Representative

o 3L Day Representative (2 seats)

o 3L Evening Representative

o 3L Weekend Representative

o 3L EJD Representative

o 4L Day Representative

o 4L EJD Representative

o 4L Weekend Representative

o Judicial Council (3 Seats)

o Hybrid Cohort 4 Representative

o Hybrid Cohort 5 Representative

o Hybrid Cohort 6 Representative

o Blended Section 1 Representative

o Blended Section 2 Representative

o Blended Section 3 Representative

Candidate Statement If you wish to have your candidate statement posted on the Mitchell Hamline website, please include it below:

Creating and Collecting SBA Fall 2021 Election Ballot Signature Survey

Creating Signature Survey

1) Log into Microsoft Office 365 through the Mitchell Hamline webpage and open Forms.

2) Select “New Form”. If this is the first-time using Microsoft forms, it may say “Create Survey”.

3) When the new survey opens, start by clicking on the textbox with “untitled form”. Then type in “Ballot Signatures for SBA____________” (insert title position)

4) In the Description Text box, under the title type name and position type “Support for (Insert name(s) for SBA (Position(s).

5) Next, click “+Add New” tab to insert a response and select “Choice”

6) Type “Do you Support (insert your name) for SBA (type in position).

7) Next in the “Option 1” textbox below the question click and type “Yes”

8) Do not type anything in the second box, scroll over the small trashcan icon and delete second textbox.

Important Survey Settings

These must be set before you send out the Signature Survey Form

1) Open-up settings which can be found by clicking on the three dots in the top right-hand

corner.

a) Under “Who can Fill Out this form” select the following:

i. “Only people in my organization can respond”. This will ensure only those

with Mitchell Hamline emails can respond.

ii. Record Name

iii. One response per person

.

b) Under “Options for responses” select the following

i. Accept responses

ii. Start date – Put Opening date.

iii. End date: at 4/2/21 at 11:59pm.

iv. You will need to also click on the time and type in the specific time of

11:59 PM.

Save File as a PDF with names and email addresses and submit with filing paperwork.

Downloading and Sharing Results

Once the survey day closes you will need to download the results into Excel form, save it as a

PDF and submit it with your filing paperwork.

1) On the top of the survey click the response tab.\

2) View Results

3) Select Open in Excel

4)