The basics
Who are you voting for?
During Fall semesters, students will cast off ballots to elect 50 of the 100 Student Government senators. These seats are based on living areas including on-campus, off-campus and family housing. Those elected will serve a one-year term.
When can you vote?
The times to vote are between 8:30 a.m. and 8:30 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday.
Where can you vote?
You have to cast your vote in person at any of the following locations: Broward Recreation Room, Hough Hall Room 120, Health Science Center C2-41C, Jennings Hall Library, Levin College of Law BGH Student Commons, the computer labs on the second floor of the Marston Science Library, Murphree Conference Room, Norman Education Library, Reitz Union SG Print Lab, Springs Area Office Room C202 and Southwest Recreation Social Lounge. (See map on page 4)
How can you vote?
Students must have a photo ID to vote and know their UF ID number or have their Gator 1 Card when going to one of the above polling locations during the voting times.
The parties
Impact Party
August 2015 - Impact Party, which currently holds the executive office, was formed in August 2015 by former Access senator Chris Boyett, former Access senator Saneh Ste. Claire, former Swamp Party budget and appropriations chairwoman Susan Webster and former Swamp Party Director of External Affairs Blake Murphy.
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Boyett said the party was created to overcome Senate gridlock. At the time, Access Party held the executive ticket while senate was divided between Access and Swamp Party senators. Conflicts led to six of 13 agency head positions being left vacant for 105 days.
September 2015 - That Fall, Swamp Party didn’t slate. The Senate’s president pro tempore, who was a party member, said some of their members wanted to move to Impact Party.
October 2015 - In the Fall elections, Impact, a then-new party, won 34 out of 50 seats. It was the most contentious election in a few cycles, with the previous elections having Swamp Party win nearly all seats unchallenged.
February 2016 - In the Spring, Impact Party won the executive ticket and 39 out of 50 senate seats.
September 2016- One year after a contentious election, in Fall 2016 Impact Party won 49 out of 50 seats and was unchallenged by another major party. The seat they lost went to an independent candidate. Similarly, in Spring 2017 Impact won the executive ticket and all but two senate seats.
September 2017 - After an unchallenged cycle, in Fall 2017 Impact Party faced up against Inspire Party and won 29 out of 50 senate seats.
January 2018 - The party lost some members of its leadership in the Spring, when Senate President Pro-Tempore Janae Moodie accused the party of tokenizing minorities and left to run for president under her own party, Challenge Party.
January 2018 - The elected treasurer, Revel Lubin, also disaffiliated with the party in Spring and ran with Inspire Party. He accused Impact of tokenizing minorities as well.
February 2018 - Despite the departure of some party members, Impact Party won the executive ticket and 36 of 50 senate seats. The elected executive ticket are the officials currently in place.
Inspire Party
August 2017 - Compared to Impact Party, Inspire Party is a younger group. Benjamin Lima, who was the party president, founded the group in Fall 2017 because he said he was unsatisfied with how the Student Body was being represented.
The party was founded on the pillars of accountability, transparency and inclusivity, Lima said. The party had members from both Access Party and Impact Party.
September 2017 - In that Fall’s elections, Inspire Party won 20 out of 50 senate seats.
February 2018 - That Spring, Inspire Party also lost a party member when Sen. Branden Pearson disaffiliated. Pearson had said the party prioritized its brand before students and tokenized minorities. In a Letter to the Editor, responding to the accusation, Inspire Party leadership denied the accusations and said the Pearson issue was about an individual.
February 2018 - Come elections, Inspire Party lost the executive ticket and won 14 of the 50 seats up for election. At the time, Lima said it wasn’t possible to tell if Challenge Party, a party that had formed that Spring, split the vote.
Voting locations for the Student Government elections
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