Student Government elections are going to take place from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the Martin Luther King Jr. University Union and the south corner of Coleman Hall today and Tuesday. Students must have a valid student ID to vote.

Ashlei Birch, student executive director of elections, said all applications were due by noon on Dec. 1, to the Student Activities Center.

“We had to hold a candidate meeting the Monday after applications were due,” she said. “We discussed where the candidates could and could not campaign, and who would be manning the polls.”

Birch said there has to be someone at the polling places at all times, otherwise people might not get the chance to vote.

Altogether, about 30 students signed up to monitor the polls for both days. Marketing was also discussed at the candidate meeting,

“We had signs up everywhere and other forms of marketing, so students would know when and where the elections were,” Birch said.

The executive positions will not be up for this election.

“They are never up until the spring elections, which are sometime between March and April,” Birch said. “All those will be up in the spring, and we will also looking for a new secretary and a new executive director of elections because I am graduating.”

The speaker of the Student Senate position, however, will be open for this election.

“Two to three people will probably want the speaker position,” Birch said. “The people who are elected for it will go against each other on Wednesday when the Student Senate members vote between them.”

Whoever is selected for the position will be announced at the meeting and take over the position after the meeting.

Student senate member Paul Reid is one person that is running for Student Senate Speaker.

He has already been on Student Senate for one semester.

“I have the support of Isaac Sandidge and Levi Bulgar,” he said.

Sandidge is the current Student Senate speaker and Bulgar is the student body president.

There are 17 students running and 25 open seats.

Appointments in the spring semester would fill all the seats that are not filled by elections.

“We won’t be able to get to them until January,” Birch said.

Students can apply for an appointment position, and the student senate speaker would then conduct interviews with them.

Election results will be announced at Wednesday’s Student Senate meeting.

Most people would be elected, but if a person got any no votes, then they will probably not get elected.

“That has never happened, though, while I’ve been here,” Birch said.

Heather Holm can be reached at 581-7942 or haholm@eiu.edu.