By Amira Benjamin, Vihaan Bhatnagar and Shaaranki Kulenthirarasa

The release of the unofficial results for the Toronto Metropolitan Students’ Union (TMSU)’s Winter 2026 general election has been delayed due to “outstanding complaints and investigations,” according to a mass email sent by the TMSU to all undergraduate students.

According to the TMSU’s Election Procedures Code (EPC), unofficial results are to be released within 48 hours after the voting period ends. The voting period ended on Wednesday, March 18 at 5 p.m.

There are a total of six Chief Returning Officer (CRO) rulings issued on the TMSU website as of March 20. Two of the six rulings were dismissals of the complaints. The email did not state how many complaints the CRO received regarding the election.

A total of 35 demerit points acquired by any slate would result in their disqualification from the election.

Team Justice received a total of four demerit points, one for violating EPC s.8.1.5: “Approval of Campaign Methods” and EPC s.8.1.7: “Physical Campaign Materials”, and three for violating EPC s.8.1.1: “Campaigning outside the Campaign Period.” 

The CRO stated that since the team attempted to retrieve distributed pamphlets after realizing they should have been stamped and numbered by the Office of the CRO, they were issued “a minimal penalty,” one demerit point in this case. Team Justice had a paid Instagram advertisement “intended to influence voters” that was active after the campaign period, which ended on March 13, leading to the three additional demerit points.  

Maria Fatkhullin, Faculty of Arts director candidate, received four demerit points for violating EPC s.8.1.1: “Campaigning outside the Campaign Period.” According to the ruling, there was an Instagram account encouraging voters with Fatkhullin’s name, with the first post being on March 8, a day before the campaigning period. The ruling stated Fatkhullin was sent a “Notice of Complaint”, but Fatkhullin did not provide a response to the CRO, leading to the issuing of the demerit points. 

Muhammad Vehra, an independent vice-president equity candidate, withdrew from the election after a complaint was issued against him. The complaint concerned an unidentified individual approaching a student with a QR code and asking them to vote for Vehra, a violation of EPC s. 8.1.1: “Campaigning outside the Campaign Period.” A complaint against Anthony Gerges, a presidential candidate, was dismissed following a review by the CRO. The complaint concerned activity on Gerges’ posts from an Instagram account belonging to former TMSU president and his older sister, Marina Gerges, under the username @tmsu.president. The CRO requested the account be edited to avoid confusion and the complaint was dismissed.

A third complaint against Team Justice was dismissed following a review by the CRO. The complaint alleged the slate was using a pre-existing Instagram account with a substantial follower base, which would give them an unfair advantage. The CRO acknowledged the Instagram account was approved by the CRO and did not violate pre-campaigning regulations.

The mass email also noted that TMSU Saviour, an address that regularly sends emails alleging corruption within the TMSU, has sent emails to students encouraging election candidates. According to the TMSU, this violates EPC s.8.1.49 about prohibited anonymous digital campaigning and EPC s.8.1.1 about campaigning outside the designated period. 

TMSU Saviour has also been previously named in a lawsuit for allegedly breaching confidential information belonging to the TMSU, as previously reported by The Eyeopener.

The last day to file an EPC complaint was March 20 at 5 p.m. 

This is a developing story and will be updated as details emerge.