Undergraduate Student Government senatorial candidate Mason Yonover was disqualified from the race after a judicial opinion released Monday found him guilty of using “language that is excessively vulgar, crude, or discriminatory” while serving as a representative of USG. While his name remained on the ballot, his votes will not be counted. Due to Yonover’s removal, the other 12 senatorial candidates will be elected by default.

“Running for office within USG inherently requires candidates to engage in discourse that reflects the values and integrity of the organization they seek to represent,” the opinion read. “Candidates are expected to uphold respectful discourse that fosters constructive conversation, rather than resorting to language that undermines the professionalism required by the Elections Code.”

Yonover lost all of his campaign funding, will receive no reimbursements from USG and must delete his campaign Instagram account. If any of those sanctions are not followed by Feb. 27, the judicial council can bar him from running in special elections for the remainder of the year and being appointed to any USG position. 

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In a statement to the Daily Trojan, Yonover questioned the legitimacy of the judicial council, calling them “a group of four unqualified students who took a trip to the gavel store” and said the decision went against the will of the students.

“I was put on fake trial by fake judges for speech they deemed obscene in an embarrassingly obvious case of political suppression,” Yonover wrote. “Anybody with eyes and ears can tell what is obviously going on here, which is that in response to my criticism of USG, the Judicial Council decided to ban me from the race.”

Chief justice Susanna Andryan wrote in a statement to the Daily Trojan that the judicial council follows the guidelines in USG’s governing documents, which informed its decision.

“While candidates are entitled to voice their opinions, engage in discussions, and express criticisms, it’s important to maintain a level of professionalism and respect,” Andryan wrote. “Our goal is to foster an environment where students can engage in constructive dialogue without fear of being belittled or offended.”

Yonover wrote that because the judicial council did not issue a decision within 72 hours and publish it within 24 hours, he will have “enough grounds” for an appeal.

Chief justice pro tempore Ryan Tung, who argued for the plaintiffs alongside senatorial candidate Dakota Driemeyer, submitted multiple counts of Yonover using “explicit” language. Tung submitted multiple counts of profanity used on Yonover’s campaign social media account and during the Feb. 11 senatorial forum.

Driemeyer filed the initial complaint and argued “explicit” comments from Yonover made before the senatorial forum were defamatory — a violation of the election code. Yonover was found not guilty on this charge because the statements did not count as defamation despite being “vulgar and disrespectful,” according to the judicial council’s ruling.

Driemeyer declined the Daily Trojan’s request to comment.

Yonover was also found not guilty of using “fighting words” because the judicial council said his “explicit insults” towards USG during the senatorial forum, while “provocative,” did not incite direct violence.

A motion to dismiss the case from Yonover was denied in a Feb. 17 decision because Yonover’s claim that a charge cannot be satisfied was “insufficient” reasoning to dismiss.