Student court drops second chair appeal

The Associated Students of Madison student judiciary dismissed a second legal challenge to the spring chair election on Sept. 29.

Rep. Michael Harry filed the brief on Sept. 22. It was his second attempt to have the body rule on procedural errors in the April 24 vote. Harry lost that election to Haia Al Zein.

Harry first contacted the judiciary on April 30. He argued the election results were invalid. On Sept. 14, he amended that filing. He added new information and asked that alleged violators be barred from future chair races.

In his filings, Harry claimed meeting rules were broken during the election. He also stated that the Chief Justice did not preside over the proceedings.

The judiciary issued an order on Sept. 8. It allowed the first brief to be discussed as a special order at the Sept. 16 student council meeting. That order changed an earlier version from April 30.

At the Sept. 16 meeting, representatives voted on the special order. Adoption required a two-thirds majority. A majority voted in favor, but the count did not reach the threshold. The motion failed. If it had passed, representatives could have re-elected the 33rd session chair by a simple majority.

Harry's second brief argued that the two-thirds requirement for the special order had no precedent. He also alleged the judiciary mishandled its order on the first brief. He claimed the Chief Justice misapplied rules during the process.

A majority of student justices recused themselves from the decision. This included Chief Justice Chloe Sieman. Harry had requested her recusal. Because so many justices stepped back, the judiciary did not assign a full panel.

Al Zein said the decision gives her hope for the rest of the 33rd session. "I hope it serves as an opportunity for us to work more collaboratively and move forward in greater unity," Al Zein said.

Sieman, Harry, and the student judiciary declined to comment further.