RECORDING: Electoral council elects the rector of the University of Tartu

On Thursday, 20 April at 12:00, the 292-member electoral council will gather in the University of Tartu assembly hall to elect a rector for the university for the next five years. 

Rector candidates are Professor of Neurosurgery Toomas Asser, Professor of Macroeconomics Raul Eamets and Professor of Bioinformatics Jaak Vilo. Toomas Asser is a member of the Estonian Academy of Sciences and, since 2018, the Rector of the University of Tartu. Raul Eamets is an economist and, since 2016, the Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences. Jaak Vilo is a member of the Estonian Academy of Sciences and Head of the Chair of Data Science. 

Professor Toomas Asser was submitted as a candidate by the council of the University of Tartu Faculty of Medicine, Professor Raul Eamets by the council of the Faculty of Social Sciences, and Professor Jaak Vilo by the council of the Faculty of Science and Technology. 

Chair of the election commission Raili Marling said that the rector candidates have participated in many constructive debates over the past two weeks. "We have had an excellent opportunity to get to know the candidates' positions to make an informed choice. I hope that all members of the electoral council sense the importance of the event and come to the elections on Thursday," said Marling. 

The 292-member electoral council comprises members of the University of Tartu council, the senate, faculty councils and the student union, as well as professors whose workload at the university as a professor is at least 20 hours per week. The candidate who receives the votes of more than half of the members of the electoral council is elected. Therefore, the future rector needs at least 147 votes to get elected. The election meeting has a quorum if more than half of the members of the electoral council are present. 

The University of Tartu Rector election rules provide that if no candidate gets the required number of votes in the first voting round, a second voting round is held, in which the two candidates who received the most votes participate. If the candidates receive an equal number of votes in the first round, the one(s) proceeding to the next round are determined by a draw. If neither candidate receives the necessary number of votes in the second voting round, a third voting round is held, in which the candidate who received more votes in the second round participates. If the candidate does not receive the required number of votes in the final voting round, the rector is not elected. 

The electoral council elects the rector for a term of five years. The elected rector assumes office on 1 August 2023.