E-mails, accusations invade SGA elections
Students vote for in the SGA elections at the UMass Campus Center on March 14, 2006.
By Dan O'Brien, Collegian Staff
March 15, 2006
Some students running for the presidential and trustee positions on the University of Massachusetts Student Government Association threatened some SGA members with lawsuits early Tuesday as allegations surfaced that four candidates took part in illegal campaigning.
Angry e-mails and formal complaints were filed after members of the Sean Robinson for President and John Williams for Trustee campaign alleged that members of two other campaigns hung illegal banners to gain votes, among other violations.
Information surfaced at the SGA's Student Union offices around midnight that presidential candidate Rob Shepherd and trustee candidate Ed Cutting, and presidential candidate Michael Makarski and trustee candidate Matthew Fox would be thrown out of the now-heated race.
Around the time of the debates, information surfaced that banners that supported the Makarski/Fox ticket were allegedly hung outside the Alpha Epsilon Pi fraternity.
Due to certain SGA election by-laws, campaign materials, such as posters and stickers, can only be produced by Campus Design and Copy, a student-run business located in the Student Union. Because the business does not produce large banners, none can be used in the SGA elections.
A photo of the banner, which may be viewed on the Massachusetts Daily Collegian's Web site, dailycollegian.com, [SEE PHOTO BELOW] was presented to the SGA Elections Commission by members of the Sean Robinson for President/John Williams for Trustee campaign.
A banner supporting the Makarski/Fox campaign is seen in this photo, allegedly taken at the Alpha Epsilon Pi fraternity at UMass Amherst.
Makarski and Fox dispute the photo and have filed a formal complaint against Elections Commissioner Priyanka Pant and the entire Elections Commission.
"There's no time or date on that photo," Fox said to the Collegian early Tuesday morning.
"According title VIII section 24 point 2, banners as defined by the bi-laws are legal means of campaigning," Makarski and Fox wrote yesterday in their formal complaint.
The more serious allegations also surfaced around midnight Tuesday morning, when claims were made by the Robinson/Williams campaign that presidential candidate Rob Shepherd and trustee candidate Ed Cutting also hung illegal banners on campus, used personal money to create the banner and created an unauthorized promotional Web site, all of which are against SGA by-laws.
SGA candidates are only given $120 from the Association to use for their campaigns. In addition, candidates may only use their personal Web site provided by UMass, which is part of the umass.edu domain, to publicize their campaign online.
In an angrily worded e-mail to President Pavel Payano and other prominent SGA members, Vice Chancellor Michael Gargano and editors of the Collegian, Cutting expressed his outrage at the allegations.
In all capital letters, Cutting wrote, in part, "I have a constitutional right to say anything I damn well please, to anyone whom I damn well please, and you do not have the right to tell me that I have to get your permission to do it."
Shepherd, in a separate e-mail sent mostly to the same individuals, threatened the Elections Commission and members of the Robinson/Williams campaign with a lawsuit.
He also said in his e-mail that he did not know of the allegations against him until he read about them Tuesday in a Collegian article.
Here is Shepherd's e-mail in its entirety:
"I am NOT a litigious person, however this is RIDICULOUS. I am not speaking of the Civil Rights violation, but rather my specific case. I DID NOT EVEN KNOW ABOUT THIS SUPPOSED BANNER UNTIL I READ ABOUT IT IN THE COLLEGIAN THIS MORNING!!!!!
"I NEVER AUTHORIZED MY SUPPORTERS TO MAKE ANY BANNERS ETC. AND TOLD THEM SOLELY TO PUT UP CAMPAIGN FLYERS AND MAKE SURE THEY DO NOT RIP DOWN THOSE OF
OTHER CAMPAIGNS!
"I followed the restrictions to a T. AND NOW WHAT???? I am being punished over something I DID NOT EVEN KNOW ABOUT UNTIL IT WAS RULED ON?
"THIS IS F***ING RIDICULOUS. HOW CAN I HONESTLY BE IN TROUBLE OVER SOMETHING THAT I DID NOT EVEN HAVE ANYTHING TO DO WITH???????!!!!!!!
"EVEN IF NO ACTION IS TAKEN, THE FACT [that] IT IS NOW PUBLISHED IN THE COLLEGIAN HURTS MY CAMPAIGN UNFAIRLY. I DEMAND THAT THIS ELECTION BE THROWN OUT FOR THIS PURPOSE.
"THE FACT OF THE MATTER IS THIS ISSUE IS ONE BECAUSE CERTAIN PEOPLE, PARTICULARLY THE SUPPORTERS OF THE ROBINSON-WILLIAMS TICKET ARE MAKING
UP ALLEGATIONS BECAUSE THEY ARE AFRAID OF THE CHANGE I PROMISE, AND AFRAID THEY WILL LOSE TO ME.
"I was hoping not to make an issue of this, however when I am put in trouble over something I did not even know about, and am given an unfair disadvantage by the Collegian for something I did not do, there is no proper recourse besides a lawsuit.
"I HOPE YOU ALL ENJOY YOUR SPRING BREAK BECAUSE I PLAN ON SUING EACH AND EVERY MEMBER OF THE ELECTION COMMISSION, ESPECIALLY YOU PRIYANKA [Pant], FOR VIOLATING MY RIGHTS. I ALSO PLAN TO SUE EACH AND EVERY MEMBER OF THE ROBINSON-WILLIAMS CAMPAIGN, ESPECIALLY JENN KENNEDY FOR SLANDER.
"HAVE A NICE BREAK, I LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING YOUR ASSES IN COURT.
ROB SHEPHERD."