Announcements for the winner of the recent student body officer elections were expected last Friday. However, only two candidates were announced as having received a majority.

“There have been rumors of rules being broken, and we just want to make sure that everything is fair before we make any announcements,” said Kristina Southam, the current student body president.

The confusion centers on whether the third majority-vote winner, and possibly the next president, violated elections rules. Once a determination has been made whether rules were broken, an announcement will be made.

“No matter what, [the elections committee] will not allow someone who has broken rules to be student body president,” Harmer said.

Elections authorities were reluctant to give details about who broke rules and which rules were broken.

“[Students] have a right to know a little. We’re trying to protect the candidate’s privacy,” said Sarah Chandler, elections committee public relations director and a freshman from Pocatello, Idaho.

Scroll spoke to a number of candidates, who were also not told details about which rules violations led to the delay.

“I think the elections committee did all they could do to inform candidates about election rules. In this situation, I think it’s the candidates who messed up,” said Andrew Cook, student body officer candidate and a junior from Blackfoot, Idaho.

Student body officers sit on all major university councils except for President’s Council, which they attend when invited, Southam said.

“One of the most important things we do is to work with and influence the decision makers,” Southam said. “That’s why we work hard to make sure we’re out there talking to students and that students have a way to reach us about concerns and solutions.”

Perhaps one of the biggest problems facing the Student Representative Council is the idea that they are ineffective or that their positions are meaningless, Southam said.

“I think this is because students aren’t informed about all we actually do. I don’t think judgments should be made until [one is] educated,” Southam said.

Student body officers receive a full tuition scholarship. Once elected, there is no official method to impeach and remove officers.

Currently, elected officers and appointed representatives are not bound to any student-ratified charter or constitution, though, the writing of a draft charter has begun and is in the process, Southam said.

At BYU-Idaho, the top three candidates are elected to student body offices. The candidate with the most votes becomes the president.

As of press time, the third candidate had not been announced, nor had any positions been assigned.

Students can visit www.byui.edu/src for an update concerning who will win the student body officer elections and to learn more about the student representative council.

The current Student Representative Council consists of Kristina Southam, Melissa Pelfrey and Jeff Potts.