FAQ Elections

In general

• When are the elections scheduled?
  The elections will take place between 22 April and 25 April.

• For which councils can I vote this year?
  In 2024, elections are scheduled for the University Council, and Faculty Councils for students. Employees of service centres and MUO can vote for the Service Council.

• What is the reference date?
  The Executive Board has set the reference date for the 2024 elections on 15 January 2024. At this reference date the elections register is compiled. All students and employees fully registered at SSC or FIN at this date will be included in the electoral roll and will be entitled to vote.

• How do I know whether I’m entitled to vote?
  Each person part of the electoral roll will receive an email from the Central Elections Office on 17 January 2024 containing his/her registration in the elections register. It is important to check the information in this email carefully.

• What to do if my registration is incorrect?
  If the information provided in the email about your registration in the electoral roll is incorrect, you can request the Central Elections Office to make an amendment to the electoral roll. You can do this by e-mail until January 31 latest. The Central Elections Office will take a decision on your request after January 31 2024 and inform you by email about their decision.

• What can I do if I didn’t receive the email about my registration in the electoral roll?
  If you think that you were fully and correctly registered as a student at the reference date (15 January 2024) at SSC or were already working as employee at that date, please contact the Central Elections Office before January 31 2024, by e-mail. The Central Elections Office will email you their decision after January 31, 2024.

• After January 31, 2024, I noticed that I am not or incorrectly listed in the electoral roll.
  After January 31 2024 the Central Elections will not take any requests for amendments to the electoral roll into consideration. Therefore, it is of utmost importance that you check your registration carefully and on time.

• How could I have known that I should have received an email and had to check this?
  A message about the email from the Central Elections Office is posted on the elections website (https://elections.maastrichtuniversity.nl/), and UM News.

• What is actually the task of the University Council, Faculty Councils and Service Councils?
  More information about representative bodies can be found on the Elections webpage. 

Nomination of candidates

• How do the elections work?
  The UM Elections use a candidate list system, where a list may comprise one or more candidates.

• How can I run for office?
  As of 19 February, you can apply here.

Election Campaign

• Where can I find information about the lists and candidates?
  All lists have the opportunity to present themselves on the elections website.

• I am a candidate and want to campaign via e-mail. Is that allowed?
  ICTS issued guidelines for the use of email in the “Maasnet UM Acceptable Use Policy”. Concerning sending out large batches of emails, this policy states the following:
  
   It is not permitted to send large numbers of unwanted and unrequested e-mails (unrequested commercial or charitable e-mails etc., also referred to as spamming) via a UM e-mail system.
  
   It is not permitted for a user to send e-mails to the entire UM community (‘stermail’) without explicit permission from an information official. If you send large numbers of campaigning emails and ICTS marks these mails as SPAM, ICTS is allowed to take measures against you, like the temporary closure of your email box. So please be sensible and only use emails for campaigning purposes within reason.

Voting

• How can I vote?
  During the elections week (22 April – 25 April 2024) you can login via: https://elections.maastrichtuniversity.nl

• Where can I vote?
  In principle, voting is not limited to your presence on university premises. The voting programme can also be reached from outside the university, unless local pc or mobile device settings (like firewalls and virus scanners) prevent access.
  If you face problems with the programme within the university, you can contact the Central Elections Office.

• I cannot login to the voting programme?
  If you cannot login to the voting programme, please check the following steps:

1. Did you receive an email from the Central Elections Office January 15 2024 about your registration in the electoral roll? If not, then you are not part of the electoral roll and cannot cast your vote.

2. If yes, as a student login with your student ID and password. Employees use their user name and password.

3. If you are part of the electoral roll, tried to login with your correct user information and still do not have access, please contact the Central Elections Office or call: 043-3883286.

• Can I abstain from voting?
  It is possible to abstain from voting.

• Can I cast my vote in writing?
  The Electoral Regulations state that the elections take place in a digital way. This implies that it is not possible to cast a vote in writing.

• Can I authorize someone to vote for me?
  It is not possible to authorize someone to vote for you.

Result

• When will the results of the elections be presented?​

The results of the elections will be presented on Friday afternoon April 26th 2024.

•  Can I see the results in detail?​
  The results of the elections in detail will be made available on https://elections.maastrichtuniversity.nl/ after the announcement of the results on April 26th 2024.