The Academic Senate Election Principles

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Article 1

General Provisions

  • The Academic Senate of GMBS (hereinafter referred to as "GMBS AS") consists of five (5) members; it is divided into a staff contingent and a student contingent. Three members are staff — two teaching and one administrative — and two members represent the student part of the academic community.
  • The GMBS AS bodies consist of the Chairman of the GMBS AS, the Vice-Chairman of the GMBS AS for the staff part of the academic community, the Vice-Chairman of the GMBS AS for the student part of the academic community and the members of the GMBS AS. 
  • The Chairman of the GMBS Academic Senate may be elected only from among the members of the staff part of the GMBS AS.
  • The election of the Chairman and Vice-Chairs shall be direct, equal and by secret ballot.

  • The Chairman and any Vice-Chairman of the GMBS Academic Senate may be elected only from among the duly elected members of the GMBS Academic Senate and must remain members of the Senate for the duration of their mandate.

  • The presence of at least three (3) members of the GMBS Academic Senate is required for the valid election of the Chairman of the GMBS AS and the Vice-Chairman representing the staff part of the academic community.
  • The presence of at least three (3) members of the GMBS Academic Senate is required for the valid election of the Vice-Chairman representing the student part of the academic community, provided that at least one (1) student member of the GMBS Academic Senate is present.
  • In the event that no student members are enrolled at GMBS at the time of elections, the student part of the GMBS AS shall remain vacant until student representatives are duly elected. In such cases, the GMBS AS shall continue to operate with the staff contingent until student representatives are duly elected. Student elections shall be initiated without undue delay once students are duly enrolled.
  • The term of office of GMBS AS members is 4 years, unless internal regulations provide otherwise. 
  • The Academic Senate decides by public vote, unless these regulations expressly require a secret ballot; elections to offices (Chairman and Vice-Chairmen) shall always be held by secret ballot.
  • These internal regulations of the GMBS AS are binding on the entire GMBS academic community.

Article 2

Organisation of Elections to the GMBS AS

  • All members of the academic community have the right to vote and the right to be elected to the GMBS AS. Each candidate must agree to his/her candidacy.
  • Elections to the GMBS AS for a new term of office shall normally be announced by the GMBS AS at least two (2) months before the end of its term of office.
  • If a member of the GMBS AS ceases to hold office before the expiry of the term of office, a replacement shall be elected in his/her place. The term of the replacement shall end at the expiration of the term of the original GMBS AS member who has been replaced.
  • The Chairman of the GMBS AS and the Vice-Chairman of the GMBS AS for the staff part of the academic community are elected from among the members of the staff part of the GMBS AS.
  • The Vice-Chairman representing the student part of the academic community shall be elected by the GMBS Academic Senate from among the duly elected student members of the GMBS AS. The election shall be conducted in accordance with the quorum requirements set out in Article 1.
  •  The election of the Chairman and Vice-Chairmen shall be by secret ballot.
  • Candidates for the positions of Chairman and Vice-Chairmen of the GMBS AS are nominated by the members of the GMBS AS. Candidates for these positions shall express their agreement or disagreement with their candidature.
  • Elections to the GMBS AS and the election of the bodies of the GMBS AS are ensured by the election committee appointed by the Rector.
  • The chairman of the election committee shall notify the members of the GMBS AS of the manner and procedure of the election.
  • The election of the chairman and vice-chairmen of the GMBS AS shall be held individually and in two rounds. In the first round, a candidate is elected if he/she receives more than 50% of the votes of the GMBS AS members present. If no candidate for office received in the first round more than 50% of the votes of the GMBS AS members present, a second round of elections will be held, to which the two candidates for the position with the highest number of votes will advance. In the event of a tie, the advancing candidate shall be decided by a separate vote. In the second round, the candidate who received the most votes is elected to the office. In the event of a tie vote, the vote shall be repeated.

Article 3

Election of Members of the GMBS Academic Senate and on the Election of the Chairman and Vice-Chairman/Vice-Chairmen in an Online Environment


Purpose and Scope

  1. This Directive regulates:
    a) the method of electing members of the GMBS Academic Senate (hereinafter referred to as the "GMBS AS") in an online environment,
    b) the method of electing the Chairman of the GMBS AS and the Vice-Chairman/Vice-Chairmen of the GMBS AS in an online environment,
    c) the basic organisational and procedural rules ensuring continuity, transparency and auditability.

Composition of the GMBS AS

  1. The GMBS AS has 5 members and is divided into:
    a) a staff part – 3 members,
    b) a student part – 2 members.

  2. The staff part consists of GMBS employees who participate in academic activities and administrative activities.

  3. The student part consists of GMBS students duly enrolled in their studies.

Term of Office and Continuity

  1. The term of office of GMBS AS members is 4 years, unless internal regulations provide otherwise.

  2. If membership ceases before the end of the term, the relevant part of the academic community shall elect a new member; the new member's term ends upon expiry of the original term.

Election Committee

  1. Elections are ensured by the Election Committee.

  2. The Election Committee has at least three members:
    a) the Chair of the Committee,
    b) the Secretary of the Committee,
    c) the Technical Administrator (LMS/IT).

  3. The Election Committee:
    a) announces the elections,
    b) verifies the eligibility of candidates and voters,
    c) ensures online voting,
    d) evaluates the elections and publishes the results,
    e) prepares an official protocol and archives the documentation.

Eligible Voters and Candidates

  1. Eligible voters:
    a) the staff part is elected by eligible GMBS employees,
    b) the student part is elected by all duly enrolled GMBS students.

  2. A candidate may be an eligible voter of the respective part who confirms in writing (electronically) consent to candidacy and acceptance of the duties of a GMBS AS member.

Announcement of Elections and Candidacy

  1. Elections shall be announced at least 1 month before the start of voting.

  2. The announcement shall be published via the LMS and email.

  3. Candidacy is submitted electronically (form/email).

  4. The list of candidates shall be published at least 5 days before voting.

Online Voting (Common Rules)

  1. Voting takes place online via a secure tool accessible through an institutional account (LMS voting tool / secure form).

  2. The online system must ensure:
    a) identity verification,
    b) the rule "one voter = one vote",
    c) prevention of duplicate voting,
    d) secrecy of voting, ensured through a secure institutional voting tool guaranteeing confidentiality.

  3. Voting shall remain open for at least 48 hours.

Evaluation of Results

  1. The elected members are the candidates with the highest number of votes according to the number of seats:
    a) staff part – 3 candidates,
    b) student part – 2 candidates.

  2. The results shall be published within 3 working days and shall be archived in the election protocol.

Tie in Votes

  1. In the event of a tie affecting election to a seat, a repeat online vote shall be conducted among the relevant candidates.

  2. If the tie persists, the Election Committee shall decide by a transparent random draw and shall prepare a record thereof.

Constitutive Meeting

  1. Following the publication of results, the Rector shall convene a constitutive meeting of the GMBS AS no later than 15 days thereafter.

  2. The Chairman and the Vice-Chairman/Vice-Chairmen shall be elected at the constitutive meeting.

Candidacy for the Chairman and Vice-Chairman/Vice-Chairmen

  1. The Chairman of the Academic Senate and the Vice-Chairman for the staff part of the academic community shall be elected from among the members of the staff part of the GMBS AS.

  2. The Vice-Chairman representing the student part of the academic community shall be elected by the GMBS Academic Senate from among the duly elected student members of the GMBS AS, in accordance with Article 1.

  3. Candidacy is voluntary; the candidate must express consent to stand for election.

Method of Electing the Chairman and Vice-Chairman/Vice-Chairmen (Two-Round Model)

  1. Elections of the Chairman and Vice-Chairman/Vice-Chairmen are conducted individually and in two rounds.

  2. Elections shall be carried out by secret ballot, if permitted by the electronic tool; otherwise, electronic voting ensuring confidentiality shall be used.

  3. First round:
    A candidate is elected if he/she receives more than 50% of the votes of the members present of the GMBS AS.

  4. If no candidate receives more than 50% of the votes of members present in the first round, a second round shall be held.

  5. Second round:
    The two candidates with the highest number of votes in the first round proceed to the second round.

  6. In the event of a tie for progression positions, the advancing candidate shall be determined by a separate vote among the tied candidates; in the event of a repeated tie, the vote shall be repeated.

  7. In the second round, the candidate who receives the highest number of votes is elected.

  8. In the event of a tie in the second round, the vote shall be repeated; if the tie persists even after repetition, the decision shall be made by a transparent random draw under the supervision of the presiding person and the minute-taker.

Online Implementation of the Election of the GMBS AS Leadership 

Elections of the Chairman and Vice-Chairman/Vice-Chairmen shall be conducted online, either:

  1. a) during an online meeting of the GMBS AS, or

  2. b) by electronic voting per rollam, in accordance with the Rules of Procedure.

The results shall be recorded in the minutes, including the number of votes in each round and the declaration of the elected candidate.

Complaints and Appeals

  1. Any eligible voter or candidate may submit a complaint within 5 working days from the publication of the results of the election of GMBS AS members or the election of the leadership.

  2. The Election Committee (for member elections) or the GMBS AS (for the election of the Chairman/Vice-Chairman) shall decide within 10 working days.

Archiving and Data Protection

  1. Election documentation (protocol, list of candidates, results, records of complaints) shall be securely archived for at least 2 years.

  2. Processing of personal data shall be carried out exclusively for the purpose of organising elections and in compliance with GDPR.

Entry into Force

  1. This Directive shall enter into force on the date of approval by the Rector.

  2. This Directive shall be reviewed as necessary within the internal quality assurance framework.