Those who voted against holding the referenda this week said they disapproved of the fact that the referendum was being exploited.

"[Holding the referenda along with the elections] is like having a big poster for one candidate slapped right on the voting program," Appelbaum said.

Council secretary Michael J. Passante '99 said he feared that it would set a dangerous precedent for candidates to manipulate referenda in future campaigns.

The executive board voted to hold the referenda from Wednesday at 5 p.m., just after the close of election voting, until Saturday.

The move puts on-line voting into jeopardy, as the Election Commission was unsure whether they will have the assistance of the Harvard Computer Society to run another poll. If not, the council will have to table in the dining halls to hold the referendum.

The council has a history of low effort in tabling for elections, Rawlins said.

"It was a logistical nightmare to get people to table.... This referendum will die if goes to tabling," she predicted.

Her opponents disagreed.

"If the student body really does care about the issue, then they'll take out two minutes of the time [after the elections] to vote for it," Passante said.

Student Grants

Although it was overshadowed by debate on the referendum to hike the minimum grants allocation, the council passed its biannual grants package last night, giving student groups a total of $51,115.69 in semester and year-long grants.

The average grant was $384.33. Big winners last night included the Harvard Computer Society ($800 for a fall grant), and the Chinatown Committee and Lighthouse magazine (each receiving about $1,200 in year-long grants).