What is the election timeline?
November 13 (Thurs): November 17 (Mon): Nominations were collected
November 19 (Wed): November 21 (Fri): Nominees accepted nominations
November 21 (Fri): Membership receives emails about candidates running
[Thanksgiving Break]
December 1 (Mon): December 8 (Mon): Voting is held (see below)
December 10 (Wed): Results are announced at General Membership Meeting
What positions are being elected?
We will be electing a total of eighteen (18) positions in this election:
An executive board consisting of thirteen (13) members: The President, Vice President for Membership, Recording Secretary, Financial Secretary, Campus Chief Steward, and the eight (8) Area Chief Stewards.
Two non-executive board positions totalling five (5) members: Two (2) at-large delegates for union conventions, and three (3) trustees
How long are terms for elected positions?
All positions are elected for a one (1)-year term. This term will begin at the January 2026 General Membership Meeting and end at the January 2027 General Membership Meeting.
What are the requirements of each elected position?
The requirements for each position can be found in our local constitution (Section XI).
How will voting be carried out? What voting system will be used?
Voting will be carried out via ElectionBuddy, using ranked choice voting.
All voting-eligible members will receive electronic ballots from ElectionBuddy to their MIT emails on Monday, December 1st, which must be submitted by Monday, December 8th to be counted.
Ranked choice voting will be used for all positions. You may rank as many candidates as you wish. For positions with a single spot, preferential voting will be used. For positions with multiple spots, single transferable vote will be used. See ElectionBuddy’s documentation for more details.
Who is eligible to vote?
All members in good standing are eligible to vote in union elections. You are eligible if:
You are an RA, TA, or IG who has signed a union card and is fully paid on dues (no owed back dues)
You are a Fellow who has signed a union card and is paying voluntary dues.
The easiest way to pay your dues is by setting up automatic payments in the member portal (https://member-portal.mitgsu.org/).
Who can I contact with questions?
For any questions, please feel free to contact the Election Committee (Belinda Zou Li, Aneesa Sonawalla, Hannah LeBlanc, Ashwin Argarwal, and Ruby Aidun) via email at elections@mitgsu.org.
When can I run to be a Steward or Department Chief Steward?
Department Chief Stewards are elected by petition per Article XII, Section E of the Constitution. Rules for election of Stewards and Department Chief Stewards by petition are available on the MIT GSU Member Portal. Completed nomination petitions can be submitted to your Area Chief Steward during the last 10 calendar days of any month, and all stewards hold their position through February 28th 2026. All Stewards and Department Chief Stewards wishing to rerun for the 2026-2027 term may submit a nomination petition any time during February 2026.