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SU Officer candidate stands down, claiming bullying and harassment within the SU

Voting opened earlier this week


A Campaigns and Democracy Officer candidate posted on Facebook declaring her intention to stand down from the current SU election.

Abbie Mulcairn, who held the position of Women's Officer previously, stated in the three years she has participated in SU elections she had "never encountered this level of bullying, harassment and intimidation".

Throughout the post Mulcairn indicates the perpetrators behind the intimidation she faced include certain Union Officers, "who are running a slate of candidates are using their platforms and resources to fill sabb roles through a system of succession, not through free and fair elections".

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One of Mulcairn's campaign posters.

Although stating she would not go into detail surrounding the ways she has claimed to have been bullied and intimidated, Abbie believes she has "been singled out and targeted with attempts at disqualification, intimidation, bullying and a barrage of personal attacks". She encouraged any other candidates who feel like they’ve had a similar experience to reach out.

The Tab Norwich reached out to Mulcairn for any further comment, but as of yet she has not responded. Commenting on the situation, SU Returning Officer Michael Wigg said: “SU Elections are run in accordance with a detailed set of rules- and whilst it’s obviously disappointing when candidates drop out, and I do take complaints very seriously, I should make clear that no formal complaints have been lodged with me in the Campaigns and Democracy election about any rule breaches.

"Voting is still open for all of the positions until Tuesday, and I would encourage all students to read the manifestos and vote to choose their next set of SU officers.”

You can find the original post by Mulcairn here.