Candidates currently competing in this year’s race for CUSU and Graduate Union (GU) positions have today fallen foul of rules set by the Elections Committee (EC), with several candidates called for disciplinary meetings or issued with formal warnings.

Mrittunjoy Guha Majumdar, a candidate in this year’s race for the role of GU president, was called for a disciplinary meeting with the EC after “reports that supporters of his campaign have removed the campaign materials of opponents.” Joe Cotton, another candidate for GU president, received a formal warning for an unrelated incident.

Guha Majumdar’s campaign violated point 3.1 of CUSU’s election rules, which states that “the defacing or removal of other candidate’s materials is prohibited.”

In a statement, the EC wrote that they “recognise the anecdotal evidence of these claims and the efforts made by Mrittunjoy to communicate the need for his supporters to follow the election rules, and as such are making no sanction beyond this.”

They added: “The Elections Committee wishes to reiterate that a formal disciplinary meeting is a serious sanction, falling just short of a campaigning ban.”

When asked to comment on the disciplinary meeting, Guha Majumdar confirmed that the meeting had occurred, and said “I presented my side clearly and succinctly. They have accepted it and I am grateful for their cooperation and understanding.”

This is the second case of disciplinary action taken against Guha Majumdar’s campaign, which was issued a formal warning on Monday for sending unsolicited emails to potential voters.

Guha Majumdar appealed that ruling, but the EC decided yesterday to reject his appeal. He told Varsity that he would not continue the appeal process, saying that he respected the ruling and did not “want such a protracted episode that shall undermine my positive message and manifesto with needless negativity.”

In a separate incident, Joe Cotton received a formal warning after a post from Wolfson College communications stated a “clear preference” for his candidacy – promoting the elections, but only naming him. Only individuals, clubs, and societies are allowed to endorse candidates.

Candidates for other roles have similarly run into trouble with EC rules. Rhiannon Melliar-Smith, who is in the running for Access Officer, was similarly the subject of an EC ruling yesterday after the committee received a complaint about “a social media post by Rhiannon Melliar-Smith featuring a picture of Rhiannon campaigning with current CUSU President Daisy Eyre.”

A statement by the EC said that it did not consider the post to be a breach of the rules, as “pictures of candidates with current CUSU officers, when not claimed as an endorsement, are permissible.

“This picture does not constitute endorsement, and EC hopes this ruling makes this fully clear to voters.”

Voting in the election closes tomorrow at 5pm. Results are expected to be announced later that day