The unprecedented recall election being held today and tomorrow will decide whether ASUC Senator John Moghtader will be removed from office.

A two-thirds majority vote is needed to recall the senator.

The recall effort began last semester following an altercation in Eshleman Hall in which some students said Moghtader was involved.

The senator has denied being involved and has not been charged or cited in connection with the incident.

However, his alleged involvement sparked outrage among some students, leading to the circulation of an online petition calling for his recall.

The petition, created by five Boalt Hall School of Law students on Dec. 1, collected more than 1,000 signatures within 48 hours and began the process that led to today's election.

Moghtader has consistently maintained that the recall is politically motivated by students who disagree with his views.

"It's a sad day-SJP and CalSERVE wasted $25,000 trying to squash opposition in the senate," he said.

A last-minute suit by Moghtader- which would have cancelled the election-was dismissed by the Judicial Council at 11:20 p.m. Sunday night.

The last-minute suit alleged that the Judicial Council acted illegally when it postponed the election last month.

According to the suit, the council violated ASUC bylaws because the election did not take place within two senate meeting dates of Dec. 10, when the petition was officially verified.

Last month, ASUC Attorney General Michael Sinanian successfully filed a suit that postponed the election from Jan. 26 and 27 because the Elections Council had not properly publicized it.

The ASUC Elections Council will begin tabulating the results immediately following the election, but officials doubt that the final vote will go uncontested.

"They're going to tear up the bylaws," said Elections Council Chair Emily Liedblad. "I'm expecting a lot of suits."

Liedblad added that she expects the recall to cost less than $20,000-a figure much lower than the initially projected $48,000.

Since its inception, the recall process has generated controversy and drawn lawsuits within the ASUC Judicial Council.

Questions as to whether the recall was adequately specific, promptly organized and properly publicized­-as required by the ASUC Constitution­have repeatedly threatened to cancel the election.

As no recall effort in recent memory has ever come as far as Moghtader's, the council has played a leading role in determining the direction the process has taken.

The ASUC's lack of experience has left key issues such as electronic signatures, elections procedures and online balloting, to be clarified by the Judicial Council. In addition, the constitution and bylaws do not provide any explicit guidelines for a recall.

Judicial Council Interim Chair Kiira Johal said the council has not used a set process in deciding cases pertaining to the recall election.

"When you go through this sort of process lots of times, the discussion that arises is organic," she said. "It just sort of flows from there."

But the council's decisions have not gone without criticism, even within the ASUC.

Sinanian, who is responsible for representing the ASUC in council hearings, has said the recall process has been marred by inconsistencies within the constitution.

He opted not to represent ASUC at a Jan. 22 hearing which addressed the question of whether the recall petition was adequately specific. The Judicial Council ultimately ruled that the petition met the specificity requirement.

However, the focus has now shifted away from the Judicial Council to the students who will decide the final recall with their ballots.

Tags: RECALL ELECTION, JOHN MOGHTADER, ASUC ELECTIONS COUNCIL, ASUC JUDICIAL COUNCIL