The Constitution of the Columbia Political Union

(Amended: 2005, 2006, 05/02/2015, 12/14/2015)

Preamble
The Columbia Political Union, organized for and by the students of Columbia University, seeks
to enhance involvement in the political process, domestic and international, and draw every
member of the campus community into an ongoing discussion of political ideas. As a nonpartisan group, we will incorporate all points of view and voices from all political groups on
campus.
Article I: General Body
1. The Columbia Political Union seeks to represent the political interests of all Columbia
students, but only General Body members have voting rights;
2. The General Body is defined as current Columbia University students who have come to
at least two meetings of the Columbia Political Union in the most recent semester they
were on campus.
Article II: Alumni Network
1. The Columbia Political Union seeks to retain connections to students after graduation
through an Alumni Network;
2. All Columbia University graduates are eligible to join the Alumni Network;
3. General Body members are automatically added to the Alumni Network upon graduation,
but may opt-out at any time;
4. Eligible individuals who were not members of the General Body upon graduation must
submit an application to the Executive Board to be recognized as members of the Alumni
Network.
Article III: Executive Board Officers
1. President
a. Serves for the duration of a complete academic year;
b. Presides over meetings of the Executive Board;
c. Supervises the execution of duties by other Officers;
d. May appoint, in the event of a long-term vacancy of an Executive Board position,
a member to fill the vacancy until the next election, with majority approval of the
Executive Board.
e. Appoints non-voting Officers to the Executive Board to oversee specific projects,
if necessary;
f. Creates, in accordance with Article IV, an agenda for weekly board meetings
distributed to Officers at least 24 hours in advance.
2. Vice President
a. Serves for the duration of a complete academic year;
b. Liaisons with other groups;
c. Fills the duties of the President in the event of a vacancy.
3. Treasurer
a. Serves for the duration of a complete academic year;
b. Monitors all funds;

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8.

c. Ensures timely approval for spending of funds from Columbia University and
appropriate governing boards;
d. Leads petitions for additional funding.
Debate Director
a. Serves for the duration of a semester upon election at the end of Fall 2015, but
serves for the duration of a complete academic year upon election at the end of
Spring 2016 and subsequent elections held on a yearly basis.
b. Spearheads brainstorming for weekly topics;
c. Presides over debate portion of meetings;
d. Ensures fair distribution of speaking time and proper decorum during debate
portion of meetings.
Operations Director
a. Serves for the duration of a semester upon election at the end of Fall 2015, but
serves for the duration of a complete academic year upon election at the end of
Spring 2016 and subsequent elections held on a yearly basis.
b. Collects and maintains attendance rolls at meetings;
c. Takes minutes and notes at meetings of the Executive Board;
d. Publishes Executive Board meeting minutes for public access;
e. Controls the current General Body list;
f. Oversees logistics of booking space for meetings and events.
Public Relations Director
a. Serves for the duration of a semester upon election at the end of Fall 2015, but
serves for the duration of a complete academic year upon election at the end of
Spring 2016 and subsequent elections held on a yearly basis.
b. Administrates social media presence;
c. Monitors, pitches to, and responds to campus publications when necessary to
promote initiatives or represent the Columbia Political Union;
d. Supports the Membership Director in developing and executing a plan to recruit
new members.
Membership Director
a. Serves for the duration of a semester upon election at the end of Fall 2015, but
serves for the duration of a complete academic year upon election at the end of
Spring 2016 and subsequent elections held on a yearly basis.
b. Proposes and executes a plan for recruiting new members;
c. Coordinates the Columbia Political Unions presence at the New Student
Orientation Program and Days on Campus;
d. Composes and sends emails to the mailing list;
e. Maintains the membership of the mailing list;
f. Serves as the Director of the Alumni Network.
Voter Engagement Director
a. Serves for the duration of an academic year beginning February 2016.
b. Is appointed by a committee comprising the Columbia University College
Democrats, Columbia University College Republicans, Columbia University
Libertarians, Roosevelt Institute - Columbia University Chapter, the Political
Science Students Association at Columbia University, and the elected officers of
the Executive Board of CPU. On this above selection committee, each of the
student groups will receive one vote, and the elected officers of the Executive
Board of CPU will receive four votes. The four votes allocated to CPU will be
proportionally divided among the elected officers of CPU.
c. Heads the Voting Week initiative

d. Retains decision-making power over all aspects of the Voting Week initiative,
including - but not limited to - selection of Voting Week officers, managing funds
for Voting Week, liaising with student groups to plan events and voter
engagement, and all other substantive tasks related to Voting Week
e. Will submit, shortly after appointment, a detailed plan outlining the structure of
the Executive Board of Voting Week and other groupings of students associated
with it, plans for securing funding, other logistical plans, and decision-making
structures. This plan will be put to a majority vote of the entire Executive Board of
CPU.
f. The Executive Board retains the right to review any of the decisions of the Voter
Engagement Director.
9. Events Director
a. Serves for the duration of a semester upon election at the end of Fall 2015.
b. Serves for the duration of a complete academic year upon election at the end of
Spring 2016 and subsequent elections held on a yearly basis;
c. Coordinates large-scale events aimed at audiences beyond the CPU General
Body, including events involving guest speakers, but not including Voting Week
(with the exception of the CPU-organized event during Voting Week);
d. Coordinates social events for the CPU General Body and the broader community
of Columbia, in conjunction with the Membership Director.
10. Political Group Representatives
a. There shall be one representative from each of the following political groups:
Columbia University College Republicans ("CUCR"), Columbia University College
Democrats ("CU Democrats"), Columbia University Libertarians ("CU
Libertarians"), Roosevelt Institute Columbia University Chapter ("Roosevelt
Institute"), the John Jay Society, the Barnard-Columbia International Socialist
Organization ("ISO), and the Political Science Students Association at Columbia
University ("PSSA")
b. Representatives shall be appointed by their respective organizations.
Article IV: Elections
1. Elections are held in the last two weeks of a semester, and only members of the General
Body are eligible to vote.
2. Only members of the General Body are eligible to become Executive Board Officers;
3. General Body members must submit an application to the previous Executive Board to
be recognized as candidates for the new Executive Board;
4. The previous Executive Board is responsible for administering the election of the new
Executive Board.
5. If a candidate receives more than half of all votes, he/she is elected to the position
contested. Otherwise, a runoff election is held between the two candidates with the most
votes. In the event of a tie, candidates are prioritized by the number of semesters spent
on the Executive Board, by academic seniority, or by random chance (in that order).
6. The order of elections shall be as follows: President, Vice President, Treasurer, Debate
Director, Operations Director, Public Relations Director, Membership Director, and
Events Director. Candidates can drop down to run for other positions. Candidates may
drop down to as many races as they would like until they are elected.
7. In the election held at the end of Spring 2015, a list of all eligible voters is outlined in
Appendix A. Each of the organizational entities in Appendix A receives one vote,
delegated as described in the previous constitution of the Columbia Political Union, as
does each of the current members.

Article V: Removal of Officers

1. Any member may motion to impeach an Officer, if the Officer is alleged to have violated
the Constitution;
2. Additionally, if an Officer has been absent for more than 3 meetings in one semester,
then that board member is eligible for impeachment;
3. Motions for impeachment will be put to vote at a meeting of the General Body;
4. The member bringing forth the motion for impeachment will make a three-minute speech
explaining the alleged violation of the Constitution. The accused Officer may make a
three-minute speech in their defense. Then, for a period of ten minutes, members will be
allowed to take the floor to discuss the proposed removal of the accused Officer.
Following this, a vote on the motion will be held that requires a two-thirds majority to
pass.
Article VI: Executive Board Meetings
1. The Executive Board must host board meetings at least once per week, whenever a
quorum of the Executive Board is available;
2. Executive Board meetings are open to the public;
3. The President, or another Officer delegated by the President, is responsible for
managing board meetings;
4. The agenda of board meetings is set at the discretion of the President. Any Executive
Board Officer, or member attending the meeting, may propose a change to the agenda.
If rejected by the President, the Presidents decision may be overruled with a two-thirds
vote of the Executive Board.
Article VII: Voting for Board Decisions
1. The Executive Board can make decisions by majority votes unless otherwise specified;
2. Any Executive Board Officer can propose a vote;
3. Votes may be administered in person, by email, or with any other communication
system;
4. The quorum needed for the Executive Board to hold a vote is two-thirds;
5. A proposed vote must be seconded by another member of the group to be carried out.
6. The President can propose votes for the General Body or the Executive Board, and
those votes are treated as if already seconded.
Article VIII: Amendments
1. Amendments to the Constitution may be proposed by any member of the Columbia
Political Union at any time;
2. Amendments must be proposed with specific language.
3. For an amendment to be passed, it must be either approved by both two-thirds of the
Executive Board and two-thirds of the General Body, or be approved by three-fourths of
the General Body.
4. The text of all passed amendments to the Constitution, as well as the Constitution itself,
must be made available online.
5. Amendments made to the Constitution in Spring 2015 take effect immediately.
6. Beginning December 9, 2015, amendments take effect immediately.

Appendix A
1. CUCR
2. CU Democrats
3. Roosevelt Institute
4. John Jay Society
5. ISO
6. CU Libertarians
7. Student Governing Board
8. Barnard College Student Government Association
9. Columbia College Student Council
10. The currently involved members of the Columbia Political Union (David Kang, Daniel
Vegeto, Lucia Saldivar, Samuel Ackerman, Samuel Henick, Partha Sharma, Alexander
Tin, Janhvi Bhojwani, Nicholas Hallock, Sean Choi, and Jason Reid).

Amendments
May 2, 2015 Present
I
Enacted December 14, 2015
Article I, Section 2 is amended to read:
"The General Body is defined as current Columbia University students who have come to at
least two meetings of the Columbia Political Union in the most recent semester they were on
campus."
As it stands, this section currently reads:
"The General Body is defined as current Columbia University students who have come to at
least two meetings of the Columbia Political Union in a semester;"
II
Enacted December 14, 2015
Article III, Section 1, Subsection (a) is amended to read:
"May appoint, in the event of a long-term vacancy of an Executive Board position, a member to
fill the vacancy until the next election, with majority approval of the Executive Board."
As it stands, this subsection currently reads:
"May appoint, in the event of a long-term vacancy of an Executive Board position due to a
resignation or impeachment, members to fill the vacancy until the next possible election, with
the advice and consent of the Executive Board;"
NB: This subsection is one of the powers of the President of the Columbia Political Union.
III
Enacted December 14, 2015
Article III, Sections 4-7, Subsections (a) are amended to read:
"Serves for the duration of a semester upon election at the end of Fall 2015, but serves for the
duration of a complete academic year upon election at the end of Spring 2016 and subsequent
elections held on a yearly basis."
As they stand, these subsections currently read:
"Serves for the duration of a semester;"
NB: these subsections are the term lengths of the Debate Director, Operations Director, Public
Relations Director, and Membership Director.
IV
Enacted December 14, 2015

Article III, Section 8 is amended to read:

"Voter Engagement Director
a. Serves for the duration of an academic year beginning February 2016.
b. Is appointed by a committee comprising the Columbia University College Democrats,
Columbia University College Republicans, Columbia University Libertarians, Roosevelt Institute
- Columbia University Chapter, the Political Science Students Association at Columbia
University, and the elected officers of the Executive Board of CPU. On this above selection
committee, each of the student groups will receive one vote, and the elected officers of the
Executive Board of CPU will receive four votes. The four votes allocated to CPU will be
proportionally divided among the elected officers of CPU.
c. Heads the Voting Week initiative
d. Retains decision-making power over all aspects of the Voting Week initiative, including - but
not limited to - selection of Voting Week officers, managing funds for Voting Week, liaising with
student groups to plan events and voter engagement, and all other substantive tasks related to
Voting Week
e. Will submit, shortly after appointment, a detailed plan outlining the structure of the Executive
Board of Voting Week and other groupings of students associated with it, plans for securing
funding, other logistical plans, and decision-making structures. This plan will be put to a majority
vote of the entire Executive Board of CPU.
f. The Executive Board retains the right to review any of the decisions of the Voter Engagement
Director."
As it stands, this section currently reads:
"Voter Engagement Director
a. Serves for the duration of a semester;
b. Manages the Executive Boards allocation for the Voting Week initiative, with the approval of
the treasurer;
c. Promotes civic engagement and voter awareness at Columbia University and in the greater
New York community."
V
Enacted December 14, 2015
Article III, Section 9 is amended to read:
"9. Events Director
a. Serves for the duration of a semester upon election at the end of Fall 2015.
b. Serves for the duration of a complete academic year upon election at the end of Spring 2016
and subsequent elections held on a yearly basis;
c. Coordinates large-scale events aimed at audiences beyond the CPU General Body, including
events involving guest speakers, but not including Voting Week (with the exception of the CPUorganized event during Voting Week);
d. Coordinates social events for the CPU General Body and the broader community of
Columbia, in conjunction with the Membership Director."

As it currently stands, this section reads:

"9. Polling Director
a. Serves for the duration of a semester;
b. Designs and distributes polls;
c. Creates information sheets and distributes them;
d. Maintains contact with student governing boards."
VI
Enacted December 14, 2015
Article III, Section 10, Subsection a) is amended to read:
"There shall be one representative from each of the following political groups: Columbia
University College Republicans ("CUCR"), Columbia University College Democrats ("CU
Democrats"), Columbia University Libertarians ("CU Libertarians"), Roosevelt Institute
Columbia University Chapter ("Roosevelt Institute"), the John Jay Society, the BarnardColumbia International Socialist Organization ("ISO), and the Political Science Students
Association at Columbia University ("PSSA")"
As it currently stands, this subsection reads:
"There shall be one representative from each of the following political groups:Columbia
University College Republicans (CUCR), Columbia University College Democrats (CU
Democrats), Columbia University Libertarians (CU Libertarians), Roosevelt Institute
Columbia University Chapter (Roosevelt Institute), the John Jay Society, and the BarnardColumbia International Socialist Organization (ISO);"
VII
Enacted December 14, 2015
Article IV, Section 1 is amended to read:
"Elections are held in the last two weeks of a semester, and only members of the General Body
are eligible to vote."
As it stands, this section currently reads:
"The General Body elects an Executive Board at the beginning of each academic semester."
VIII
Enacted December 14, 2015
Article IV, Section 6 is amended to read:
"The order of elections shall be as follows: President, Vice President, Treasurer, Debate
Director, Operations Director, Public Relations Director, Membership Director, and Events
Director. Candidates can drop down to run for other positions. Candidates may drop down to as
many races as they would like until they are elected."
As it stands, this section currently reads:

"The order of elections shall be as follows: President, Vice President, Treasurer, Debate
Director, Operations Director, Public Relations Director, Membership Director, Voter
Engagement Director, and Polling Director. Candidates can drop down to run for other positions.
Candidates may drop down to as many races as they would like until they are elected."
IX
Enacted December 14, 2015
Article VIII, Section 6 is amended to read:
"Beginning December 9, 2015, amendments take effect immediately."
As is stands, this section currently reads:
"Beginning in Fall 2015, amendments do not take effect until the Semester after which they are
passed, unless otherwise noted."

Amendments May 2, 2015

The text of the Constitution as a whole, less the above amendments passed after May 2, 2015,
was passed as an amendment to the previous version of the Constitution on May 2, 2015. The
amendment procedure followed was that stipulated in the aforementioned version.

Amendments 2006
The Constitution was amended in 2006, leading to the version of the Constitution that remained
in place from 2006 to May 2, 2015.

Amendments 2005
The Constitution was amended in 2005, leading to the version of the Constitution that remained
in place until 2006. These amendments were changes to the 2002 version.