Student Senate’s Board of Elections has given the FACE ticket until June 3 to provide additional information regarding its campaign finance report.
FACE reported that its income totaled $3,488.90 and that it spent $776.53.
Board of Elections Chairman Chauncey Jackson said the board is waiting for FACE to provide more information but did not say what aspects of the report it is investigating.
The reports show, however, that FACE and RSVP used different methods to calculate their total expenses.
RSVP reported that the party spent $3,410.96 and raised a total of $4,496.97, including monetary and in-kind contributions, as well as fundraising profits.
RSVP included its fundraising costs in its expenses, while FACE did not. If FACE had included its $1,734 in T-shirt purchases, it would have spent a total of $2,510.53.
FACE also had inconsistencies in its fundraising report, which states the ticket bought $1,734 worth of T-shirts but only sold $850 worth, a difference of $884. However, the cover page shows an $884 profit from the T-shirt sale. If FACE actually lost $884 on its fundraiser, its total raised would be $1,720.90, far less than its expenses.
FACE presidential candidate Matthew Wallace and treasurer candidate Chrysten Crockett did not respond to repeated calls for comment.
Write-in candidate Chris Wagner, who received about 25 percent of the votes in the presidential race after a two-day campaign, did not have to turn in a finance report to the board. Wagner said his only campaign material was a paper flyer printed on campus, worth three cents.
Despite his relative success, Wagner said he thinks it would be difficult to repeat a campaign like his.
“I think that my campaign was particular,” he said, adding that the large amount of money most campaigns spend generally crowds out candidates who lack funding.
Secretary-elect Chris Wimsatt, who ran on the RSVP ticket, said his party’s success — all 31 RSVP candidates won seats — was not solely due to its ability to raise money.
“It’s evidence of the fact that we had more broad-based support from the start,” Wimsatt said. “We had a group of people who were very financially invested in winning.”
The majority of both tickets’ contributions came from the candidates, but some supporters also donated. RSVP received a $150 donation from Ohio Sen. Jimmy Stewart (R-20).
RSVP made a $495 profit from its T-shirt sales, according to its finance report. The party sold all but six of the 380 shirts it purchased.
Parties are not allowed to use leftover money for anything other than elections, but if the party chooses to renew as a student organization, it can use leftover money for the following year, Wimsatt said.
Current Student Senate President Jesse Neader said SOUND, last year’s winning party, chose not to renew. The funds left in its account will remain there until the account lapses and the university claims the money, he said.
Wimsatt said the money RSVP spent was worth it.
“It was a lot of work, and it was a lot of fun,” he said. “When it’s all said and done, there’s nothing more satisfying than looking back at a job well done.”
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