Students File Lawsuit Over UCI Election Rules
Three UC Irvine undergraduates have filed a lawsuit against the university over its rules on student government elections, saying campaign spending limits violate free-speech rights.
David Welker, Ian McGrew and Nathan C. Masters also are challenging the bans on placing campaign posters and bumper stickers on cars and campaigning off-campus during election week.
UC Irvine officials declined to comment on the lawsuit.
“None of these provisions would be constitutional if applied to a candidate for state or federal office,” said Welker’s attorney, James Bopp Jr., of the James Madison Center for Free Speech.
Welker was removed from elected office after the university discovered he had spent $233.40 on campaign posters, Bopp said.
The regulations, which have been in place since the school opened in 1965, limit such spending to $100. This is the first time the regulations have been challenged in court, said UCI spokeswoman Karen Young.
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