Outside Norris University Center, under The Arch, around SPAC and at other strategically chosen places around campus, victorious and defeated candidates from April’s Associated Student Government elections can still see their names on the ground.

Most of their campaign fliers and chalking disappeared or faded away weeks ago, in accordance with ASG election guidelines. Only a few stubborn fliers remain.

But spray paint for defeated candidate for social services vice president Adi Shankar shows few signs of fading.

“I think it was a crafty idea, but it really just boils down to vandalism,” Weinberg sophomore Nick Spear said of the neon green and yellow spray paint on South Campus walkways.

The paint also violated election guidelines, said Election Commissioner Jack Vrett, a Communication senior. Once election day passed, the matter fell out of the Election Commission’s hands.

Receipts for Shankar’s campaign expenses indicate he did not buy spray paint but a spray-paint-and-chalk mix, Vrett said. The mix sprays out of a can, like spray paint, but it sticks to the ground like chalk, allowing it to wash away easily.

“The stuff that they used is not the stuff that they bought, as far as we can tell,” Vrett said.

Shankar, who lost the SSVP election to Weinberg junior Leah Witt, said the majority of his campaign budget went to fliers, and he couldn’t remember how much had gone to buying spray paint.

“There was nothing in the rules that said we couldn’t use that,” Shankar said. “I’m getting a lot of attention for this, especially from the opposite sex. I think a lot of people think it’s funny.”

ASG Advisor Helen Wood said the Northwestern administration has taken up the matter.

“Currently what is happening is that Facilities is working on the removal of it, and they’re keeping a running tab,” she said.

Wood said she didn’t know how much the final cost of removal would be or how much Shankar, a Weinberg junior, would have to pay. In past cases, a student group usually was held responsible and took the cost of removal from its budget. Because Shankar is just one person, he may have to pay for removal himself or split it among his campaign team, she said.

Campaign violations this year were relatively low overall, although the Election Commission received about three to four complaints per day as election day approached, Vrett said.

“People almost all the time are making up violations (against opponents) when they’re campaigning,” he said. “It’s very hard to tell what’s real and what’s not. One candidate claimed that (another candidate) used alcohol in their campaign. As far as we could tell, that was made up by the other side.”

Reach Nitesh Srivastava at [email protected].