Updated: March 9, 2022 at 8:05 p.m.

The Joint Elections Commission extended the candidate registration period on Monday for 15 Student Association Senate races where not enough candidates have registered to fill all of the seats.

The JEC extended the registration deadline from March 6 to March 18 and will only accept registration documents online for the remainder of the period, according to an email the body sent to students Monday. The extension comes as candidates prepare for the official campaign period, which starts Thursday in advance of the election on March 29 and 30.

The JEC did not extend the registration deadline for SA presidential and vice presidential candidates.

Trip Johnson, the chair of the JEC, said the organization’s bylaws grant it the power to extend candidate registration when the number of candidates running is less than the number of available seats.

“We believe extending candidate registration can only help the overall election because it increases the number of participants running,” Johnson said in an email. “This was an easy decision to make for the JEC because those registering during the extended period are not losing a large portion of campaigning time since the majority of the campaigning period is after spring break.”

Editor’s Note: This post has been updated to include a statement from the JEC chair.