AT FIRST glance, the playing field for student elections seems quite fair this time around. The rules and regulations have been publicized, and problems we have witnessed in the past seem to have been alleviated for the time being.
However, let's not forget what we're dealing with here. Akin to the presidential primaries and debates that have consumed us in the media, elections on our own campus have proven to be occasionally eventful -- and with changes in the elections process this year, students campaigning here at U.Va. need to be fully aware of the circumstances and stresses that even the campaign season alone can create. Specifically, students should be wary of the limitless expenditure cap and issueless campaigning, which has plagued this University throughout its recent history.
In the past, we have seen students running for office throw themselves into their respective races -- with advertising campaigns that have left our bus stops, sidewalks and even snow-covered walkways looking like carnivals of epic proportions -- only to stare dead in the face of large-scale student apathy. We have also seen the elections process grow so taut with tension that calls for elections violations and recounts were commonplace -- and incidents ensued that ultimately consumed the entire student body and the University.
With the University Board of Elections running the show during this spring's elections, students setting themselves up to be at the helm of the races can finally feel as though they are all in poll position: Having an unbiased, technically sound system managing the elections process this year. Nevertheless, regardless of the managerial systems that govern the process, students campaigning for election should be aware of the loopholes the system has to offer: namely, the limitless expenditure cap and the freedom to be endorsed and financially supported by student organizations. An unlimited budget for students and the groups that back them can turn our campus into an unruly sideshow, and besides the fact that the Admissions Office could consider the advertising blitz that come with student elections a on-Grounds nightmare -- students at the University would much rather be bombarded with keen messages that ignite their intelligences, rather than egregious poster campaigns that dull their senses.
In the past, the push for votes on our campus has turned a once-solidly democratic process into a circus that national politicians would be proud of; however, what potential leaders should address here are key issues -- not just their names on posters, handbills and highlighted in cement. Students seeking offices that represent the entire student body should not only be seeking the endorsement of particular groups, but of individuals who make up the student body themselves. When it comes down to it, only a percentage of the students at the University care enough to vote, regardless of whether the University's home page or the campus newspaper drive the message down their throats to do so. The reason is because generally, the student body doesn't feel that students elected into office on our own campus can make effective change in the year's time that they are elected, but just imagine what it might be like to see a proposition made by one of the candidates --- instead of simply their name emblazoned in a patriotic flag or sitting above a U.Va. Athletics logo.
In countless elections, individuals are selected to represent our collective voice, and within months, they get themselves caught up in the bureaucracy and red tape of their own design. At a University where success rates are high, and standards are even higher -- Student Council's rate of productivity over the course of the years has held a steady low in terms of all that could possibly be done to improve the University -- and given that notion, students won't even bother to step up to the plate and vote because they are certain that student self-governance will end up being no more than student self-politicking for that select group of so-called representatives.
Perhaps this year, at least one candidate for office might actually stumble upon the notion that apathy amongst the student body isn't the enemy, but that true initiative from student politicians is. Slogans and catchy name phrases aside- the candidates people want to vote for come correct with plans that are feasible and worth casting votes for. Granted, a single year is limited time to affect change, but if Student Council's president actively sought change, and got it, think about what that might do to our collective apathetic state of mind, and the number of voters the next time around.
Besides the fact that important decisions might one day be made in Student Council that effect us all, this isn't a name-game here, folks, and if that's how it's going to get played, then in the end, we'll all be at a loss for it. Someone with a great campaign slogan but no message or agenda for action with regard to the University might be elected -- and in that event, all we'll have are representatives with good-looking nameplates shining brightly on the desks that our Student Activities Fees pay for.
(Kazz Alexander Pinkard's column appears Thursdays in The Cavalier Daily. He can be reached at kpinkard@cavalierdaily.com).
Read More
WILLIAMS: From deepfakes to ChatGPT, AI can ruin us
By Ryan Williams | 2 days agoIt is crucial for us to reevaluate our personal reliance on AI and begin understanding how it acts as a problematic shortcut.
ELJAZZAR: Advising changes are a step toward student success
By Farah Eljazzar | December 10, 2024With the long history of student complaints regarding advising in the College, it is commendable that the University administration is committed to responding to student concerns and prioritizing student academic well-being.
BRUNMAN: Stop ghosting us, Governor Youngkin
By Wylie Brunman | December 8, 2024For the sake of students — and the Governor — his state administration should rethink its stance on this meeting and its approach to interacting with students more broadly.
