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2005-03-17:
Dawson College students vote for union accreditation
Many students unaware of reason for referendum; critic calls vote 'fraudulent' due to irregularities
By Nicholas Smith
The Plant (Dawson College)

MONTRÉAL (CUP) -- Sixty-seven per cent of voters -- comprising 29 per cent of the student body -- supported accreditation for the Dawson College student union, a preliminary tally shows.

One-quarter of the student body needed to vote yes, and more had to vote yes than no for the vote to count. 2,099 students voted in favour of autonomy for their student union and 1,018 voted against, while 18 spoiled their ballots.

There were also about 250 rejected ballots, 200 of which were rejected because they were cast by people who aren't full-time students at the college, while the rest were second ballots cast by a given student.

The college has received a sarcastic letter from some Dawson students thanking administrators for their "ongoing support and enthusiasm" in helping the student union achieve accreditation.

But surveying students revealed very few understood the referendum process.

"I thought it was about the bursaries," said Francine Hernandez, a business student, referring to the strike by other CÉGEPs over Québec's cuts to post-secondary bursaries.

One scrutineer, who refused to be named, reported hearing another student say the same thing.

"No one ever explained what the vote was about," said Derrek Nador, a social science student. "After the vote ended, some people came into my class and I asked them to finally explain what accreditation is."

There were also complaints about the "roaming" ballot boxes, which many students found annoying. One was so annoyed by constant questioning of "Have you voted?" when asked about the roaming ballot boxes, he punched a wall and stormed off.

Patrice Blais, a former Concordia University student involved in the accreditation drive at that school, said other student unions have used roaming ballot boxes and they helped increase voter turnout.

But the roaming ballot boxes may be at the centre of a controversy concerning the legitimacy of the vote. Ju Leon Tan, an outspoken accreditation critic at Dawson, has drafted a complaint to the Ministry of Education concerning the conduct of the vote.

Tan alleges scrutineers, particularly those at the roaming ballot boxes, weren't checking ID cards, something he says he has documented by talking to students. It appears some of his charges may have merit.
"My ID wasn't checked," said Elisheva Bouskila, a liberal arts student. "The scrutineer told me, 'If anyone asks, I checked your ID.'"
Tan called the vote "fraudulent."

Although it is unknown how widespread the problem was, the Plant observed numerous cases of ID not being checked and even a couple of cases in which people voted for someone else. Because fewer than half of students voted, people could have easily voted for someone else who hadn't voted.

If multiple ballots were attributed to the same student, scrutineers would have had to decide which ballot was legitimate, if any. The accreditation oversight committee wasn't sure of its policy on the matter until the end of the vote, sometimes saying the first ballot in would count and sometimes saying neither would count.

Melanie Hotckiss, chair of the oversight committee, said they took the first ballot with each person's name that came in.

Hotchkiss reported 250 rejected ballots, which comprises 3.5 per cent of the student body, meaning the rejected ballots had no effect on the outcome of the referendum.

Hotchkiss admitted there were problems but said she was happy with the
process.

"There were a lot of things that could have been improved, especially on the first day. But all elections are fraudulent," and for the most part, things were done properly, she said.
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