After a three-hour closed-door meeting, the Election Commission ruled that both candidates running for Associated Student Government president were guilty of “non-respectful discourse” for messages they released Monday afternoon.
The charge is based on two sections in the Northwestern University Student Handbook, said Weinberg senior Jeff Cao, the commission’s chairman. As punishment, the committee required both candidates to issue a statement “reiterating their commitment to respectful campaigning and discourse.”
Alessio Manti, a SESP sophomore and presidential hopeful, sent the first controversial message to his campaign’s Facebook group at 1 p.m. The message, which was widely circulated across campus listservs throughout the day, pointed five accusations at his opponent, SESP junior Claire Lew. He later sent the same text, which The Daily has reproduced here, as an e-mail to several individuals, Manti said. Although several claims in the message would constitute campaign violations, Manti said he never filed an official complaint.
Lew, who received a forwarded copy of the e-mail about 4 p.m. Monday, said the allegations were “completely untrue” and immediately issued a response message, also reproduced here.
“It’s disappointing to read something like that when it’s so unsubstantiated,” Lew told The Daily as she was writing her response. “I’ve heard the same things about my own campaign, but I didn’t resort to responding in this way because I hoped we could look past it. I trusted he didn’t encourage or condone any of that behavior either.”
Although he has not accused Lew individually, Manti’s message directed claims at “the opposing campaign.”
“I didn’t want this to become a public issue, but I called and contacted Claire three times in as many days-all about separate instances-and her campaign’s tactics still haven’t changed,” he wrote in the message.
Later in the day, Manti clarified he did not believe Lew personally directed her staff to act in an illegal or unethical way. But he stood by his message.
“Even if you didn’t, there are certain tones that are set in the campaign,” he told The Daily. “At the end of the day, it’s the final responsibility that comes down to the candidates themselves.”
Manti first called Lew about possible campaign violations Saturday evening. The two then exchanged a series of text messages Sunday night and Monday afternoon. The Daily has obtained the entire correspondence from Lew, and it is reproduced here. The messages were copied verbatim from her iPhone and confirmed with Manti.
In the texts, Manti informed Lew of several “disappointing” incidents regarding her campaign tactics. Lew responded that she did not “condone” the activities Manti described.
The commission deemed Manti’s Facebook message disrespectful because it bypassed official procedures and contained significant accusations, Cao said.
Although Lew’s response contained no accusations, Cao said she received the same sanction for failing to reiterate her position on campaign integrity after Manti contacted her about his concerns.
“By not doing that, she was not contributing to respectful discourse,” Cao said.Lew, however, said she has instructed her staff to act with integrity since the beginning of the race.
The candidates will participate in ASG’s official debate tonight at 7 p.m. in Norris University Center, and the election will take place Wednesday.[email protected]
