Meeting LSU’s eligibility requirements for candidates harder than getting elected

By CAROLINE BASSO

Two Langara students say they’ve been disqualified from running in the Langara Students’ Union elections taking place this week, raising concerns about what they say are overly onerous eligibility criteria.

Dilpreet Mann, a general studies student at Langara, said the LSU blocked him from running in its election.

The LSU denied his eligibility to run for president even though he says he has the qualifications for the role.
“All of my documents and everything was pretty genuine … I felt quite frustrated, [and] felt discriminated,” Mann said.

The LSU said it based the rejection on an apparent lack of requisite experience on Mann’s resume: experience in business administration, public relations and education in political science. Eligibility requirements to run for president in particular require, “familiarity with governance concepts, including policy development, rules of order, and board participation,” according to the LSU website.

Mann said his resume showed he had experience in each of those categories.

“In the public speaking, my grandfather back home [in] India was mayor of the village, and I have worked with him around two years,” he said.

The materials in Mann’s application package, which the Voice has reviewed, did not include details of his past media or public speaking experience.

Different application same answer

Dilpreet said that other students shared a similar fate when applying to run in the election.

“Some of the students also approached me that their application was also rejected.”

Harmandeep Bhullar, a business management student in her sixth semester at Langara, said she followed all the instructions laid out on the LSU website to apply to run.

“Everything was given to them in the same manner they asked for,” she said. Bhullar said she was denied because she lacked any previous experience in politics.

She said requiring students to have prior political experience just to run for the student union simply prevents young people from acquiring that experience.

“If I start something then I can have experience in that, right?” Bhullar added.

According to LSU’s email, its criteria for eligibility “focus on ensuring that the individuals taking on leadership positions are adequately prepared to serve the student body effectively.”

“This helps maintain a high standard of leadership, which is essential for the success of the LSU,” it said.

This year’s election phase was overseen by temporary chief returning officer Manpreet Kaur, a third party contracted to oversee the elections.

“When choosing to run for the president position for the students’ unions’ elections, the onus is on the student to make sure they understand the qualification of the said role and determine if they have the required experiences to meet these requirements and should be able to demonstrate that through their resume and cover letter,” Kaur said on an email sent to Mann.

Problems with process

Mann said he asked one of his instructors for a reference letter and received an email from her affirming her support, saying he could include her email response to the LSU.

The LSU denied the emailed note of support, saying it wasn’t a proper academic reference letter.
“What you submitted … was email correspondence with an instructor asking them to be your reference,” wrote Kaur.

The LSU’s website does not specify the academic reference must be in the form of a letter. “I researched online for like around four to five hours, and I got to know that we should fulfill four documents for the starting an eligibility criteria for the elections,” Mann said.

The LSU said “the eligibility process is designed to be clear and straightforward, even for students whose first language is not English.”

In order to run for student union elections, some Lower Mainland post-secondary student unions only require candidates to be students enrolled and in good standing at the school they attend.

BCIT’s student union requires election candidates be members in good standing of the student union and have a grade point average of 65 per cent or better.

Appeals and claims of harassment

When Mann’s application was denied, Mann went to the LSU in person and sent two emails appealing the decision. The LSU told Mann to stop reaching out to it.

In an email to Mann, Kaur said “please be aware that students on campus must not engage in persistent communication that is deemed harassing.”

She said the decision by the LSU election committee was final. “As a result, further threatening or intimidating emails will be referred to Langara security for follow-up.”

On the day voting began, Oct. 15, Mann and several others organized a protest in the LSU building outside of the polling station.

Previous election complaints

During the LSU election in fall 2023, several students came forward to accuse the LSU of having a strict and biased election process that favours certain candidates over others.

Students Keshav Puri and Khushi Salwan said they were forced by the LSU to run for roles they were not qualified for. Puri, who had applied for the vice-president finance and administration role, was pushed into another position and was elected as vice-president of external affairs.

By the time of voting last year, both roles Puri applied to had a single candidate on the ballot. He was denied the role based on the LSU’s eligibility process which is overseen by the LSU’s chief returning officer.

General student union elections are held every year in the first seven weeks of the fall semester together with a new intake of members who run for the various positions for the student union board. Elected councillors serve three semesters over the course of one year.

LSU response

The LSU said that it would like to investigate more thoroughly the complaints by Mann and other students and make decisions accordingly.

While it does not work directly with students to guide them through filling out their eligibility forms, “we ensure the information provided through their resources and communications is correct,” it said in an email to the Voice.

“If the students believe they were given incorrect advice, we ask them to provide specific details regarding what was said and by whom,” it added.

The LSU said it is “committed to maintaining transparency and will always address any valid concerns with the utmost seriousness.”

Lack of competition

As of publication, this week’s LSU election has only one candidate listed for vice-president finance and Indigenous students’ rep. Both candidates will win by acclamation.

Two candidates, Joshua Emarico Antonio and Navroop Kaur, are running for president.

Bhullar believes that it’s every student’s right to run for the elections, but also every student’s right to be able to choose the best candidate for the role.

“Everyone should get an equal chance for their representation in elections,” Mann added.