Welcome to the campaign trail for the National Student Council (NSC)! These guidelines are designed to ensure a fair, ethical, and successful election for all candidates and voters involved.
Please read carefully to understand how the election works, how to introduce yourself to voters, the spending limit and ethics requirements, and where to direct any questions you may have.
How the Election Works
- Election Dates: The election will take place online, via the election portal, from May 15 to May 17, 2024. Candidates may begin campaigning Wednesday, April 24, 2024.
- Voting Method: Individual students do not vote directly. Each NASC-affiliated school in good standing is entitled to one (1) vote per officer position. The student council adviser will cast this vote on behalf of their council after internal deliberation to decide on their supported candidates.
- Election Outcome: Election results will be announced May 21, 2024. The candidates with the highest number of votes for each position will be declared winners. In case of a tie, runoff elections will be conducted.
Introducing Yourself to Voters
Every officer candidate will have a profile on the election portal showcasing their name, school, biography and a short video. Please submit the following by Thursday, May 2:
- Biography (300 words max): Share your leadership journey, your motivations for running, and why you are the best choice for the position. This is your opportunity to resonate with and inspire your potential voters.
- Video (90 seconds max): Present who you are, your student leadership highlights, and your vision for the NSC. Creativity is encouraged to differentiate yourself and communicate your message effectively.
In addition, a ‘Meet the Candidates’ webinar is scheduled for May 7, 2024, where each candidate will have 1 minute to share why they should be elected. This session will be recorded and shared with NASC member councils.
Spending Limit, Ethics, and Regulations
- Campaign Spending: Candidates must adhere to a $25 campaign spending limit.
- Ethical Conduct: Candidates and their supporters must uphold the highest ethical standards. This includes:
- Promoting oneself positively without disparaging opponents.
- Avoiding any content in campaign materials that disparages or defames NSC, NASC, NASSP, or conflicts with the organizations’ missions and values.
- Ensuring campaign content does not discriminate, harass, or encourage illegal activities.
- Promoting oneself positively without disparaging opponents.
- State Associations: State Student Council Associations may elect to promote specific candidates in the national election.
- Websites and Social Media Usage: All candidate profiles and campaign information will be hosted on the NASC website and social media. Candidates may not creates websites to promote their candidacy, but can leverage personal social media accounts (existing or new accounts). When posting, candidates should strictly abide by the conduct and ethics expectations set forth in the campaign guidelines and bylaws. We request that all social posts from candidates tag the official NASC social handles (@natstuco).
- Email: Candidates may not send unsolicited blast emails promoting their candidacy.
- Outside Organizations: Outside organizations are not permitted to be involved in the election.
- Disqualification: Failure to adhere to these guidelines and the NSC bylaws, as determined by NASSP, may result in disqualification.
Questions
For any inquiries regarding the election rules, campaign guidelines or NSC bylaws, please reach out to [email protected].