Senate passes the 2026 GM Week Elections Handbook, with more than a few contentions

In a rare marathon session of Senate, the 2026 GM Week Elections Handbook was ratified, marked by sharp disagreements over dramatically increased nomination requirements. The Senate also resolved to confirm Aaron Niyazov ’28 as Web Technologies Group Chairperson unanimously. The Elections Handbook contention raised notions that the changes could make student government elections less competitive and accessible, a similar argument to the one made in 2023. The handbook passed with a final vote of 17-0-0 after extensive amendments brought down nomination counts from the Elections Commission's initial proposal. However, even the amended requirements represent substantial increases from recent years.

The most contentious aspect of the amendments to the handbook centered on how many student signatures candidates must collect to appear on the ballot. The Elections Commission initially proposed: Grand Marshal and President of the Union: 400 nominations (up from 150); Undergraduate President: 250 (up from 100); Graduate President, a new position: 40; Senators, unchanged: 75; Graduate Senator: 15 (up from 3); Graduate Representative: 10 (up from 2).

After debate and amendments, the Senate ultimately approved: Grand Marshal and President of the Union: 200 nominations; Undergraduate President: 85; Class of 2027 President/VP: 60 (down from proposed 75); Class of 2027 Senator: 40 (down from proposed 50); Independent Senator: 75 (down from proposed 150). Elections Commissioner Caleb Carr ’26 ’26G and Vice Commissioner Lauren Antao ’28 defended the increases as "proof of work" meant to ensure candidates engage meaningfully with constituents before running. They emphasized that the numbers were not arbitrary.

One of the main arguments on the EC side kept circling around COVID-era restrictions that had drastically reduced nomination numbers. For example, Carr brought up that around ten years ago candidates running for GM or PU had to get 600 nominations, whereas UP had to have 300. Antao expanded on this with her own experience, arguing that for a student running for a position in government, a certain amount of affability and door-to-door campaigning quality is required, for how is a student to be in government without interacting with their constituents.

A chief contender to the nomination numbers was Class of 2026 Senator Edward Piontek, citing the 2023 GM week elections when high nomination counts resulted in no opposed races for Grand Marshal, President of the Union, or Undergraduate President, as evidence that excessive requirements reduce competitiveness rather than improve candidate quality. The result was that only well-connected candidates deeply involved with Student Government ran unopposed, with the disastrous implication of a threat on the democracy of student government.

Additionally, it was brought up that the act of collecting nominations is not necessarily an involved process, and is thus not a true mark of how a candidate interacts with their constituents. Multiple senators also raised concerns about how the increases would affect different student populations. Graduate Representative Melissa Flores ’28G specifically noted that the proposed graduate senator increase to 15 signatures would be achievable for co-term and PhD students but potentially difficult for master's students who spend less time on campus.

Grand Marshal Tiburon “T” Benavides ’21, ’27G weighed in in favor of the higher nomination count, saying that he ran with the 150 count received solely from fellow graduate students that only make up 15 percent of the student population at RPI, a considerable skew, and thus the 400 nomination count for GM and PU seemed reasonable. However, he also acknowledged a concern with the new Endorsement Form policy where any individual or organization that wishes to endorse a candidate for any position would be required to fill out a form and submit it to the EC stating exactly that; “an extra social barrier,” as dubbed by Benavides.

Beyond nomination counts, the updated handbook now includes the Moose Act, which establishes rules against pre-campaigning and gives the Elections Commission authority to investigate violations. Other changes include mandatory GPA verification via Registrar stamp or digital record, a requirement EC members acknowledged had not been consistently enforced. More include: reduced union poster limits (10 per candidate, down from 15), a priority registration system for returning political parties, and clarified class year determination rules addressing edge cases like architecture students.

The debate revealed fundamental tensions about student government's purpose and outreach strategy. Niyazov questioned whether the Elections Commission should have authority to make major changes to eligibility just within a single term, suggesting constitutional amendments for consistency. The discussion took a detour when Carr criticized the Senate Engagement and Communications Committee's social media strategy, arguing that “brain rot” content was not promoting student government effectively, while SECC Chairperson Jordan Krishnayah ’28 countered with engagement data showing that lighter content actually drives profile visits where students then learn about the Union.

With the handbook ratified, GM Week 2026 elections proceed under the new requirements. Campaigning begins February 23, with candidacy forms due March 19 and elections on March 20 (primaries) and March 26 (finals). The Elections Commission retains the authority to lower requirements if a low number of candidates qualify.

This Senate meeting took place on Tuesday, February 10, 2026. The Senate meets every Tuesday at 6 pm in the Shelnutt Gallery.