Candidate temporarily loses posting rights
March 24, 1992
Violations in Student Association presidential candidate Maurice Thomas’ campaign lost him the right to post election posters for 48 hours.
SA Election Commissioner Lance Schart said this is the third violation for Thomas.
Schart said Thomas’ first violation occurred Friday. Thomas violated three aspects of the University Programming and Activities poster policy, which state that posters in Holmes Student Center meeting rooms must be affixed with masking tape, posters are not allowed on sidewalks and approval must be obtained for posters not placed on bulletin boards.
The commissioner said he informed Thomas of these infractions and gave him until 10 a.m. Saturday to remove the posters.
Schart found an illegal Thomas poster in Gabel Hall, and another warning was issued with a deadline of 10 a.m. Monday to remove the poster.
But Monday, a graduate student found an illegal poster in the Lincoln Hall computer lab. Schart said the flyer in question did not have hall approval and was hung illegally on a brick support pole. A third warning was issued stating that he violated the SA Bylaws and would not be allowed to post materials in all university buildings for 48 hours.
Schart said this is Thomas’ third warning, and any more warnings will result in his being disqualified from the race.
Thomas, who said he expected the third warning, said the posters initially were put up in their proper place and were moved by others not associated with his campaign.
“The problem is not that people on my staff and myself are putting these up because we are putting them up on the bulletins and all other proper areas. From that, some students or people have been taking them off the bulletins and putting them in places of violation,” Thomas said.
However, Schart said the flyer in question was hung illegally and without hall approval. He said if there was any tampering with the flyers, the interfering candidate could be removed from the race.
“I am by no means making allegations against the other candidates. However, I am quite concerned that students on this campus would do something like that,” Thomas said.
Thomas said at this point in time, the 48-hour ban on posting will not affect his campaign. He said he plans to make a humanistic effort and reach the voters in person.