SGA Election Rule Violation Complaint

Fri, 18 Apr 2025 11:04:12 -0400

The Election Board recently received an election complaint against the Eli Gendleman/Shriya Menon Presidential campaign in reference to a social media post that was published by the Gendleman/Menon campaign in collaboration with the @umbcpolice Instagram account in which the candidates posed with UMBC’s comfort dog Chip and stated that “Chip thinks you deserve the college experience. Get what you deserve - vote us for Exec prez and VP". The complaint alleged violations of the following election rules:

Rule 17: The use of resources owned by SGA or any other UMBC office for campaign purposes is prohibited, except when the resources are available for public use. Campaigning or preparing campaign materials in the SGA Office is prohibited. Examples of prohibited conduct within the SGA office include using SGA telephones to solicit votes, wearing visible paraphernalia supporting candidate(s), and using supplies from a UMBC office to create advertising. Campaigning during SGA Open Meetings, including Senate or Finance Board meetings, is prohibited.

After careful review of the complaint and the 2025 election board rules, the Election Board did not find any evidence of rule-breaking. The Election Board voted to dismiss this complaint. As stated in Rule 17, “The use of resources owned by SGA or any other UMBC office for campaign purposes is prohibited, except when the resources are available for public use.” Considering that Officer Chip is labeled as UMBC’s comfort dog and that any student is welcome to take or post pictures with Chip and tag or invite to collaborate with Chip’s own Instagram account, this action taken by the Gendleman/Menon ticket is protected by Rule 17’s language of “except when the resources are available for public use”.

During their investigation, the Election Board contacted UMBC’s Community Outreach Sergeant, who takes care of Chip and her appearances around campus. Sergeant Cheatem confirmed that any student or candidate is able to take pictures with Chip, post them, and tag or collaborate/be posted on the campus comfort dog’s own Instagram page, which happens to have the handle @umbcpolice. Despite the handle, the Instagram account essentially functions as a fan-page for Chip, as the account is designated as a public figure and not used for any official UMBC police communications. Additionally, the Election Board discovered during their investigation that another candidate running for a different position within SGA had similarly taken pictures with Chip and co-published the post on Instagram with Chip’s account, indicating that the resources are in fact available for public use and the same actions could be taken by any candidate who requested to collaborate. Sergeant Cheatem also stated that Chip is considered available for public promotional use as the larger UMBC community’s comfort dog, and the only limiting factor of this is her schedule.

The Election Board wants to reiterate that any student who believes that they have witnessed an Election Rules violation should report a complaint to the Election Board, remembering that complaints must be filed by 48 hours after an alleged violation is discovered OR by 11:59 p.m. on Friday, April 18th-- whichever is earliest. Thank you.