Update: This story has been updated to reflect a comment from Amy Allen as of 11:13 a.m. on March 28.
As of the morning of March 24, Associated Students, Inc. (ASI) presidential candidate, Carlie Hall, and the Next Step Slate received another campaign violation for distributing PRIME drinks, despite previous denials from University Dining Services. This ended in a verbal confrontation where the associate dean of student involvement was “struck” by a PRIME inflatable.
Hall had submitted a waiver to distribute the PRIME drinks along with a PRIME inflatable display during campaign tabling.
However, on March 21, University Catering denied the request, citing Fresno State dining’s exclusive campus contract with PepsiCo, which restricts the distribution of non-Pepsi beverages on campus and at campus events.
In response to Hall’s violation, Mary Davis, ASI election commissioner, clarified that the director of University Dining Services, Megan Sarantos, had explicitly denied Hall’s waiver. Sarantos told Hall that non-PepsiCo drinks cannot be distributed without the approval of the University Dining Service and that the waiver was not submitted 30 days prior.
Read the presidential Election Code Violation notice and candidate’s response
“We could not approve her request to serve them [PRIME] at a tabling event,” Sarantos said.
Despite the waiver denial, Hall and the Next Step Slate proceeded to distribute the PRIME drinks on March 24.
Hall later acknowledged the mistake in an email response to the ASI Election Committee as she did not know or understand that it was a “formal event.”
“I did not realize our ASI-reserved tabling space would be considered a formal ‘event’ under dining policies,” Hall said in a required response statement to ASI.
This campaigning event led to further complications, as the PRIME drinks and inflatable display were deemed promotional materials for Hall’s campaign, violating several campaign rules. Additionally, a verbal confrontation occurred when Associate Dean of Student Involvement Amy Allen approached the tabling event to discuss campaigning materials.
According to reports, the encounter escalated, causing the PRIME display to fall and strike Allen who, according to Hall’s response to ASI, later that morning filed the report; however, according to Hall, the complaint of Allen being “struck” is “highly exaggerated.”
“During the interaction, the unsecured inflatable blew over, striking my back with both metal stands,” Allen said.
These incidents are violations of Fresno State’s election code, including Section 9.3(c) regarding campaign endorsements and materials, Section 9.3(g) on campaign spending and donations, and Section 9.3(d)(i) related to the unethical use of candidate funds or resources.Additionally, Section 9.9(b) regarding minor violations was also cited in the report.
According to the report, this overall incident constitutes a “Major Code Violation” and is the campaign’s second ASI Election Code Violation for the 2025 campaign season.
The penalties for the violation and further violations could result in disqualification from the presidency if Hall either willfully or repeatedly violates the code violations, fails to correct prohibited behavior and/or has disruptive or aggressive conduct undermining electoral fairness, all according to the report.
The violation report also identified three other potential infractions. The first involved a “Failure to Report In-Kind Donations,” as no in-kind donation form was submitted to the ASI Election Commission for non-monetary contributions.
The second violation addressed the “Violation of University Beverage Policy,” reiterating that Fresno State’s exclusive agreement with PepsiCo prohibits the distribution of non-approved beverages on campus.
The third violation is “Disruption of Campus Operations and Staff Engagement,” which is in regard to the confrontation between Hall and Allen at the tabling event.
The Collegian reached out to Carlie Hall for comments, but she did not respond.
