Student Government election campaign season opened Jan. 29 for senatorial and presidential candidates, with the Benbow-Thompson campaign facing a potential election violation for prematurely announcing their bid.
Presidential candidates include current chief of staff Matthew Gonzales for president and current Vice President Allison Castillo for vice-president; Corey Benbow for president and Sen. Tucker Thompson for vice-president; Sen. Alex Plunkett for president and Sen. Kelly Torpey for vice-president.
Senatorial candidates have not yet been announced.
Although the election campaign has just begun, election code violations were filed against the Benbow-Thompson campaign, alleging the campaign was in violation of Chapter 105, Article 2 Section 1 of the Election Code, which states “No candidate or those associated with candidates should campaign or endorse until the official campaign period has begun as determined by the Election Board.” According to the filed claim, Benbow-Thompson violated this rule by campaigning on Jan. 27 and Jan. 28.
The Election Board convened Jan. 31 at 7:30 p.m. in the LBJ Student Center to discuss the allegations and decide a proper course of action. The board will make their final decision Friday.
The University Star will follow up on this story as results of the hearing become available.