GW Joint Elections Committee

In response to heightened concerns of moral drift, the Joint Elections Committee announced today, the establishment of a swear jar. The committee hopes that the glass container - which serves as an homage to the transparency by which the election has been administered thus far - will not only encourage Committee members and candidates to watch their tongue while near the office, but also serve as a broader moral beacon for the election as a whole. The measure, passed by a unanimous vote in Saturday’s meeting establishes penalties ranging from twenty-five cents to a dollar depending on the obscenity evoked.

“THIS IS SUCH F****ING BULL***T!” Exclaimed Committee chairman Benjamin Balter, prior to the measure passing. Clarifying the statement later that evening he added, “we’ve been running a pretty tight ship all semester. That doesn’t mean we need to start talking like sailors.”

MEDIA: A formal press release is also available.

The Committee has taken a series of steps this election season to encourage friendlier campaigns. Past years have seen a “scoreboard” available online featuring a running tally of candidates’ violations as well as an overall sensationalizing of complaints. Although still within the scope mandated by the charter, the Committee has dramatically scaled back the amount of public attention given to rules violations.

Balter elaborated, “sometimes we loose sight of the fact that at the end of the day, we’re talking about a campus election. Having one too many posters may be fun to read about for some, but this election should be an election of issues, not an election of rules.”

The Joint Elections Committee (JEC) is an independent body that administers student elections at the George Washington University. The JEC is comprised of two appointees from the Student Association, one appointee from the Marvin Center Governing Board, one appointee from Program Board, and one joint appointee from the three organizations listed above.

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