The Student Government Association (SGA) will hold its 2026 elections on April 16 and 17, the Joint Elections Commission (JEC) confirmed Monday. This marks the latest election dates since the commission was established in 1976, according to Eric Gitson, the JEC’s commissioner.

Adapting to Religious Observances

Gitson told The Hatchet that the JEC will hold voting for SGA president, vice president, and senators from 9 a.m. on April 16 until 9 p.m. on April 17. He said the commission anticipated holding the elections “several days” later than normal to accommodate religious holidays like Easter and Passover, which occur at the beginning of April.

“We don’t want to force candidates to campaign during a time of prayer and reflection for them,” Gitson said in a message.

The JEC will announce the election results April 18, the day after polls close. The campaign period will kick off on April 6, when verified candidates can begin putting up posters around campus. The SGA presidential and vice president debate is scheduled for April 15, the eve of the election.

Historical Context and Election Scheduling

The SGA for years held its elections in mid-to-late March, but the JEC since 2023 has delayed the elections to mid-April due to issues verifying candidate signatures and now-repealed reforms to convert the commission to a three-branch structure.

The SGA’s bylaws until last year required the JEC to hold elections after spring break but before the end of March, but senators removed those requirements last February, allowing April elections permanently.

Gitson formally took over the JEC in February following a brief period of uncertainty for the commission, when the commissioner senators confirmed to lead the body in the fall abruptly resigned. Gitson said in late January, when he was then working as JEC commissioner in an acting capacity, he did not anticipate his late appointment delaying the elections.

Preparation and Candidate Information

The commission will hold two candidate information sessions, one of which aspiring candidates must attend to be eligible for office. The sessions are scheduled for March 3 at 5 p.m. in University Student Center room 308 and March 5 at 7 p.m. in USC room 404. Gitson said the JEC will also hold a “backup” virtual information session, which the commission will announce at a later date, but he hopes would-be candidates will attend one of the in-person sessions.

The JEC will open the candidate registration period from March 19 to 25, where SGA hopefuls must collect a required number of verified student signatures to appear on the ballot, according to Gitson. The commission has not yet announced the number of signatures required for this year’s elections, which will likely change due to shifts in enrollment.

Candidates for president and vice president must obtain the valid signatures of 1.5 percent of students, undergraduate senators must obtain 1 percent of students in their constituency, and all other senate candidates — like graduate and law students — must get at least 0.25 percent of their constituency’s signatures.

Last year, those requirements translated to 379 signatures for president and vice president, 55 signatures for Columbian College of Arts & Sciences undergraduate senators, and fewer than 20 signatures for all other positions. Candidates can collect signatures on paper or digitally, but they must collect them all through only one method.

Gitson said the JEC will also hold a Mount Vernon Campus forum and town hall with candidates running for office, which is slated for April 9, so first-years living on the Vern can feel more involved with the elections process and ask candidates questions.

The commission will communicate more information about the campaigning process, like deadlines and rule changes, on its Instagram page @GW_JEC. Gitson said the JEC is working with the Division for Student Affairs and GW Information Technology to determine which voting platform the commission will use to conduct the elections.

He said SGA leaders have been pushing for a shift away from Engage as the platform for SGA elections — which the JEC has used since 2019 — because it makes it difficult for students to find and handle their ballots, but the JEC and DSA have not yet decided on a platform for the upcoming elections.

Officials confirmed this month they will switch GW’s organization management platform from Engage to CampusGroups over the summer in response to student and SGA advocacy.

“We are aiming to finalize this decision as quickly as possible,” Gitson said.