Last week, Darst, while declaring his candidacy, attempted to articulate his goals to The Crimson.
Just the night before, at a council meeting, Monteiro prohibited such discussions with the media, promising to publicize these guidelines.
Darst is not a council member and was not present at the meeting.
Gaillard said the only publicity on the part of the commission has been through “word of mouth” and e-mails to individuals who have expressed to commission members an interest in running for office. This initiative is far more limited than previous elections’ publicity efforts, which included postering and sending messages to e-mail lists.
One source close to the council said Darst has been fined by the commission for multiple campaign infractions, which may or may not include talking with campus media.
The source said the fines were assessed despite the minimal publicity efforts by the commission.
Darst declined to comment last night, citing the commission’s gag order.
—Staff writer Alexander J. Blenkinsopp can be reached at blenkins@fas.harvard.edu.