Referenda

Similar to a referendum question you might see when casting a ballot for a local, state, or federal election, referenda at Northeastern are questions or proposals directly voted on by the student body during the annual election for Student Body President and Vice President. If you have any questions about the referenda process, please contact SGAelections@northeastern.edu or refer to the Association’s Bylaws.

Selecting Referenda

Referenda are vetted by the SGA Executive Board using the following criteria: adherence to Northeastern policies/legality and fairness of wording. In the case that there are more than 5 referenda approved by the Executive Board, the proposals will then be voted on by the Senate to determine the top 5.

Referenda Outcome

After the Direct Election, the outcomes of the referendum will be announced at Senate. A copy of the outcomes will also be directly provided to the organizations who submitted the referenda in case they are unable to attend the Senate meeting.

Submitting a referendum question

Any undergraduate student or student group can submit a potential referenda question at the beginning of the Spring Semester. The referenda collect a sense of the student body (get the opinion of the student body) through a yes or no question.

The referenda as a whole should fall under one of the following categories: Sense of the Student Body, Call for the Northeastern Administration to Act, or Call for the Student Government Association to Act.

  1. “Sense of the Student Body” is defined as an expression of the collective beliefs and opinions of the Electoral Base. This referendum represents the position of the Electoral Base itself rather than individual student representatives or the university administration.

  2. “Call for the Northeastern Administration to Act” is defined as a request from the Electoral Base calling on the Northeastern University administration and leadership to address specific concerns and implement change.

  3. “Call for the Student Government Association to Act” is defined as a request from the Electoral Base calling on the Student Government Association to address specific concerns and implement change.

Along with the question itself, each submission should include a background to provide context to the issue being discussed, as well as suggested actions to be taken if calling upon a body to act on a particular issue.