The 68th Senate of the Associated Students of New Mexico State University met on Sept. 5 to elect new officials, induct senators, and review bills and resolutions. A total of five new senators were inducted into the association.
To start the meeting, two new senators from the College of Engineering were introduced, including Wyatt Ziche and Luis Meraz. Two senators from the College of Arts and Sciences were also introduced, including Hebah Alhalholy and Diego Carrillo. One senator from the College of Business, Joesph Brown, was also welcomed into the legislative branch of the association.
On the Senate floor, discussions concerning bill 27 and resolution one took place at the request of Senator Kolby Taylor. Bill 27 and resolution one concerned amendments to the election packet within the ASNMUS’ bylaws and there was a unanimous agreement on the changes made to the election packet.
Within bill 27, senators expressed concerns over the anonymous violation’s procedure. Senator Getchel expressed concern regarding the protection of someone who files an election violation. Vice President Elida Miller responded.
“The form will not have the name of the person who filed the violation,” Miller said. “It will be blacked out on the document given to the accused.”
ASNMSU Chief Elections Officer Jasmine Padilla also weighed in on the discussion.
“To prevent election fraud, people who submit violations need to attend a violation hearing in some capacity,” she said. “This could be either through a phone call or having a representative come in their place. The identity of the filer can remain anonymous, but at least someone on the election board will have the identity of the filer, again to prevent fraud. They are also required to provide their Aggie ID and are not allowed to file more than three violations.”
Padilla also mentioned that she worked on changes to the election packet over the summer. After ASNMSU’s last election, she mentioned she needed to re-earn student trust.
“The main goal for this election year is to regain the confidence in the student body that we have lost over the years,” Padilla said. “That is the goal, and that goal drove us to make these changes, we want to facilitate fair and equitable elections.”
The reasoning for the proposed amendments comes after a tumultuous election last semester. To ensure that issues from previous elections cycles do not arise, these additional measures are being taken to protect candidates, students, and senators, according to supporters of the bill.
In addition to the updates to the ASNMSU elections packet, resolution one was an agreement to adopt the changes made in the election packet. Resolution one passed with an unanimous vote amongst senators.
The ASNMSU Senate convenes every other Thursday on the third floor of Corbett Center Student Union. The next meeting will convene on Thursday, Sept.19, 2024.
