Presentation given at WIDAR (Workers in Democracy & Representation) conference 2013. An outline of how Sussex has moved to appointing a student as their Returning Officer and their campaign points system for candidates' publicity materials

1. Student Returning Officers
& campaign points
Jo Walters
@jowalters
Membership Engagement Coordinator
Sussex Students’ Union

2. How we learned to stop
worrying and
trust students

3. A quick poll:
Who is your Returning
Officer?

4. The role of the
Returning Officer
at Sussex

5. Returning Officers at
Sussex: A brief history

6. Returning Officer: Student volunteer
Deputy: Union Staff member
The furthest back Jo
can remember
(at least 2004ish)

7. Returning Officer: Full-time Officer
Deputy: Union Staff member
From 2006ish

8. Returning Officer: NUS
Deputy: Union Staff member
One set of
elections in 2012

9. New for 2013:
Recruit a student to be
our Returning Officer

10. Local knowledge & experience
Regularly available
Focused on the role
We love students
Why?

11. A risky move
Impartiality
Quality &
quantity of
candidates
New = scary
flickr.com/photos/prawnpie/635836359

12. Ensure the Union’s elections are run fairly and in
accordance with the election rules
Ensure candidates are aware of the election rules
Answer candidates’ queries about the rules
Decide upon and impose sanctions if the elections
rules are breached
Respond to any complaints about the conduct of the
elections
Write an elections report for the Union’s Executive
Committee, Council and Trustee Board
Job description
Want the full thing? Email me and I’ll send it over – jo.w@sussexstudent.com

13. Essential requirements
1. To be a fully registered University of Sussex or BSMS student
2. To be a proactive self-starter and work under your own initiative
3. Excellent communication and interpersonal skills
4. The ability to act impartially
5. An excellent understanding of the principles underpinning the elections rules and to
make judgements accordingly
6. The ability to appropriately challenge behaviour not in keeping with the rules
7. A strong understanding of and commitment to the democratic nature of the Students’
Union
Desirable requirements
1. Experience of working (paid or unpaid) in a similar role e.g. a sports referee
2. Knowledge of University of Sussex Students’ Union’s democratic processes
Person specification
Want the full thing? Email me and I’ll send it over – jo.w@sussexstudent.com

14. “Most importantly the Returning Officer
must be impartial – so you must not be a
supporter of any candidate, be part of any
candidate’s campaign team or give any
view at all, publicly or privately, as to who
you would or wouldn’t like to win.”
Recruitment

15. We interviewed six
candidates and
recruited Gabriel
Recruitment

16. New = scary

17. New + preparation
= excitement &
unexpected
awesome

18. Focused only on elections
Fresh perspective
More independent
Advantages

19. Costs more
Recruitment takes up time
Risk of an unsuitable appointment
Disadvantages

20. Costs more
Recruitment takes up time
Risk of an unsuitable appointment
Disadvantages
The biggest disadvantage

21. Strong recruitment
Transparency
Training
Support from Deputy Returning Officer
Have a Plan B
Key tips

22. Boosting the Returning
Officer’s power

23. Warnings
Removal from the
election
Typical sanctions
flickr.com/photos/mskogly/2405945004

24. Warnings
Increase naughty candidates’ competitors’
scope for publicity
Reduce naughty candidates’
scope for publicity
Removal from the election
Our sanctions

25. Candidates are allocated
a number of points
Our points system

26. Points mean prizes

27. Let’s play with a real example
Points values

28. The Returning Officer
giveth points and the
Returning Officer
taketh away points

29. Easy to tweak to encourage/discourage
things
Aims for fairness
Aims to limit spending
Relies on trust
Advantages

30. Weird to explain
‘How many points for a ______ ?’
Relies on trust
Disadvantages

31. Any questions?

32. jo.w@sussexstudent.com
@jowalters