Because of the low number of potential Senate candidates, the Undergraduate Student Government (USG) passed a petition last night that could potentially reopen the process for putting candidates on the election ballot.

Head elections commissioner David Gelpi brought the document before the Senate, outlining the process for accepting new candidates.

If passed by the Supreme Court -- the final decision-maker in the process -- the document will require new election packets to be turned in by noon Friday.

Packets will be available electronically for candidates to download and fill out. They will need to be turned in to the USG office or handed to a commissioner by the designated time, Gelpi said.

New candidates will have to accept a $30 reduction in the amount of money allocated for campaigning funds. The Senate candidates who submitted their packets on time have a $100 budget, while the new candidates will have only $70 to spend.

Gelpi said this restriction is a "reasonable punishment" for those who were unable to submit their packets on time.

He also said the commission would not accept late packets if no punishment were enacted.

"The people running should show dedication," Gelpi said.

Some senators were unsure of the petition, expressing worry that reopening elections might continue to tarnish USG's reputation.

"Going back on [the initial] process may further harm USG," South Halls Sen. Henry Hund said.

Others believed that reopening the process would increase the level of student involvement in the elections, giving more promise to the Senate for next year.

"It's really sad that we don't have representation in certain areas," Town Sen. Frank Criscione said. "If there is anything we can do to help and get student input, we should do it."

Gelpi said that although the commission is unsure of how many more candidates will actually hand in packets, he thinks student involvement is still there.

"We can't pretend it's a perfect process," Gelpi said.

USG Internal Affairs Chairman and South Halls Sen. Brock Coleman said the document will be passed to the Court for approval and to check the "obvious number of issues" surrounding the petition.