By Elizabeth Faragi
The University of Maryland Student Government Association is proposing to amend the SGA bylaws following this year’s election cycle, which ended in the disqualification of both tickets. The current SGA will be voting on whether to enact these amendments Wednesday at their General Body Meeting, sources say.
The Residence Hall Association and the Graduate Student Government sent a letter to the SGA on April 28 expressing their concern over the proposed amendments. They said that rewriting their terms so quickly when inconvenienced will set a bad precedent for future leaders, according to a letter obtained by Stories Beneath the Shell.
“We urge you, in the strongest possible terms, to reject the proposals,” RHA and GSG members wrote in the letter. “Attempting a post-hoc rewrite of your governing documents in order to avoid accountability under the election rules that your own body voted to approve earlier this academic year is beyond troubling.”
The SGA proposed amending multiple bylaws in the SGA Handbook during their April 22 general body meeting, according to SGA documents. These bylaws outline the rules and regulations under which the SGA operates. There are a total of 45 proposed amendments to the bylaws.
One of the proposed amendments addresses the election violations and the disqualification of both tickets in this year’s election.
“If more than 50% of legislative seats are vacant due to candidate disqualifications, or any other reason, all legislative offices shall be filled by popular vote, and notwithstanding any prior disqualification under election regulations, all otherwise eligible undergraduate students may seek or cast votes for that office,” the SGA proposed amendment document said.
The SGA plans to hold a special election in the fall to fill the vacant seats following the disqualification of JusticeUMD and RollTerps from this year’s election.
Another amendment, which has since been removed from the public SGA documents, said the election disqualification of an “otherwise eligible ticket” is not allowed, meaning that the Elections Committee cannot disqualify full tickets, according to original SGA documents Stories Beneath the Shell obtained from GSG. This applies retroactively, according to the documents.
If enacted, this would mean that the JusticeUMD and RollTerps tickets could have been reinstated in this year’s election.
Leonard Fomin, the head elections commissioner of SGA, told the governing body on April 22 that the amendments were unconstitutional. He added that this would be a conflict of interest, as many current legislators were on the ticket for this year’s elections.
Peyton Steinberg, RollTerps’ presidential candidate, agreed with the comments raised by RHA and GSG.
“The concerns my ticket has raised throughout this SGA election cycle about fairness, personal and professional integrity and democratic norms are also shared by two prominent campus organizations that have no stake in the campus elections,” Steinberg said. “This recognition symbolizes a deeper issue with SGA culture.”
Amira Abujuma, JusticeUMD’s presidential candidate, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
RHA President Emily Shoemaker wrote in a statement to Stories Beneath the Shell that RHA is not comfortable with the precedent that SGA is setting.
“As RHA is partnered with SGA in many ways through event planning and advocacy work, we felt it necessary to tell them how their actions impact us,” Shoemaker said. “Our hope is that they decide to follow the decision of their Elections Committee, a group which they confirmed earlier this semester to monitor the election process.”
RHA and GSG wrote in their letter that they would no longer trust any agreements with the SGA, citing that they would have a lack of confidence in the SGA’s ability to maintain commitments.
“Not only that, but it would also be viewed as the actions of an illegitimate government,” RHA and GSG wrote. “If you enact these amendments, then RHA and GSG will be compelled to sever all formal ties with your body at the executive level.”
Clements-Housser clarified what severing ties with SGA means for RHA and GSG in a statement to Stories Beneath the Shell.
“RHA and GSG would leave external committees chaired by SGA, remove SGA representatives from our own committees, decline to collaborate with the SGA on event scheduling and planning, and everything else listed in the letter,” Clements-Housser said.
He also said GSG would remove its vote from the University System of Maryland Student Council, which represents students across 12 Maryland higher education institutions and three regional higher education centers. They share a seat with SGA and must reach a consensus for either vote to count, and GSG believes it would become impossible to find a consensus.
“Unfortunately, we currently feel that this is a necessary sacrifice to make if it comes down to it,” Clements-Housser said.
Featured Image: The Student Government Association office in the Adele H. Stamp Student Union. Photo by Anika Stikeleather.
Editor’s Note: This story was last updated on April 29, 2026.