On Wednesday, Jan. 6, ASUCR held their first meeting of winter quarter where they reviewed the election timeline for the year. This year, the timeline was modified to reflect the university’s announcement that spring quarter would be held entirely remotely, marking one whole year of remote learning.
The announcement came in the form of a campus-wide email sent on Tuesday, Jan. 5 citing the third wave of the pandemic that has hit California and has caused Riverside County to regress into the purple tier of California’s Blueprint for a Safer Economy. The city has been under a regional stay at home order since Dec. 7 and has had very limited ICU capacity. “To help all members of our community plan ahead and prepare, we are announcing the continuation of remote instruction through spring quarter,” says the email, adding that the same policies and procedures adopted for fall and winter will likewise apply to spring.
In anticipation for this year’s ASUCR election season, Elections Director Lama Yassin presented the timeline starting with Jan. 19, when students will be able to begin filing for candidacy. The deadline to apply will be Feb. 16, the same deadline to submit constitutional amendments. Candidate workshops will be held during late February and early March, with specific times still to be determined. Students will be notified of candidate confirmation on March 29, and candidates will be able to campaign for three weeks beginning that day. During that time, Yassin was excited to announce the implementation of candidate conventions for ASUCR senators and the executive branch, which will be held over Zoom. “I feel like students didn’t get that much one-on-one time or any face to face interaction with candidates, so I still want to make that happen,” said Yassin.
Voting week will be held during the week of April 19, and elections results will be announced on April 27. Special elections for the elections director and vice president of external affairs will be held two weeks later on May 10.
During senator reports, CHASS Senator Sebastian Quinteros stated that during the break he met with UCR Basic Needs to discuss UCRs Student Health Insurance Plan (UCSHIP) and they have been discussing ways to inform students on its benefits. He is currently also assisting an effort led by other ASUCR senators and the Middle Eastern Student Center (MESC) who are working on a piece of legislation that clarifies the protocols for discrimination on campus. During his report, CHASS Senator Christopher Kent stated that he is in the process of meeting with other ASUCR senators, the LGBTQ Resource Center and Costo Hall regarding writing legislation to mandate pronoun training for members of ASUCR.
Finally, during her announcements, Executive Vice President (EVP) Natalie Herandez stated that SPP Senator Nava Majlessi recently resigned and is searching for a replacement. The first alternative rejected the position and EVP Hernandez stated that she was awaiting a response from a second alternative.
The meeting was adjourned at 6:55 p.m.
