Elections

1. Sign Up

Nominations

When the nomination sheets are posted on the Student Council notice board write your name on your year group’s nomination sheet. Your nomination will need to be endorsed by a classmate (‘endorsed’ means that the classmate thinks you would make a really good student councillor).

The student who endorses you might also want to be your Campaign Manager. (A Campaign Manager is someone who helps you with your campaign and works to get you elected).

Nominations are open for five days (usually Monday to Friday). When the nominations close no-one else can add their name to the nomination sheet.

2. Speak Up

Campaigning

The following Monday (after the Nominations have closed) the list of candidates for each year group is posted on the Student Council Notice Board. When this happens the candidates can begin campaigning.

What does campaigning mean?

Candidates (with the help of their campaign managers) set about convincing their classmates that they are the best candidate for the job of Student Councillor.

Campaigning means talking to your classmates about why you would be a good Student Councillor.
Here are some of the things you could do in your campaign: –

• Produce a poster with your name and picture on to put up in your classroom (it might say something like ‘Vote for your name for the Student Council’)
• Conduct a survey amongst your classmates asking them what is important to them, what concerns them, what they would like to see change and what ideas they have to make school life better.
• Produce a flyer saying what kind of Student Councillor you would be and what you would like to achieve.
• Set up a candidate station in the playground one break time and invite your classmates to come and ask you questions and talk to you about their ideas.

Things you must not do when you are campaigning:-

• Offer inducements, such as sweets or gifts, to your classmates in return for votes.
• Bully or be abusive or threatening to your classmates in order to get votes.
• Any candidate participating in prohibited campaigning activities may have their misdemeanours brought to the attention of the Headteacher who has the authority to disqualify candidates.

Hustings

The other thing you may have an opportunity to do is to give a short talk to your classmates at a ‘Hustings’. A Hustings is a meeting where candidates have an opportunity to address their potential constituents and put their case as to why they are a suitable candidate to vote for.

3. Vote!

Voting

Following the campaign week, there will be a day that all the students vote by secret ballot…

• Each class is invited to the POLLING STATION (in the School Hall)
• Each student goes to the registration table where they will be given a ballot paper and directed to a voting booth
• Each student may select the FOUR candidates they would like to be their class representatives by marking an ‘X’ in the box next to the candidate’s name and picture (Do not write your name or anything else on your ballot paper – if you do your ballot paper will be ‘spoilt’ and will not be included in the count)
• Each student then folds up their ballot paper and puts it into a ballot box
• Once a student has put their ballot paper in the ballot box they must immediately return to their classroom without talking to anyone waiting to vote

When every student in the school has voted the ballot papers will be counted and the winners of each class election will be announced.