To recap, this term we have seen approximately 3,241 grievances, 22,796 hours of Senate meetings and around the gross domestic product of Sweden leave the coffers of the ASUO.
Check asuo.uoregon.edu if you don’t believe us. Well, no, don’t. It’s a little more reasonable than that. A little.
But now, as opposed to the monotony and relative anonymity of the ASUO during budget season, the ASUO election season is vibrant. Because starting the week you get back from spring break, student government hopefuls will be campaigning for your votes. If you’ve never been through week one of spring term at the University, prepare for the technicolor world that East 13th Avenue and University Street is about to become.
To clarify, each campaign (called a “slate”) has chosen a color — one which their matching shirts, fliers and other paraphernalia will all adopt. Usually, there’s a solid red, a neon out-of-the-ordinary color and — if there are any more — a basic color: black, navy blue and the like. The slate is, typically, a president, a vice president and as many of the various Senate/committee positions as they can find — kind of like a political party.
The running joke of ASUO elections among students has consistently been the attempt to speed by the corner and canvassers with the use of iPod headphones. Don’t do this.
Elections last two weeks, with activity happening at the center of campus. You’re not going to avoid the campaigners that whole time with your music. Instead, here’s our recommendation: Vote early on for the primary and general elections (week one and week two). That way, when someone asks you, “Have you voted?” you can say, with full confidence, “Yes!”
The Emerald will feature a Q-and-A with each presidential candidate in the Monday paper of Finals Week this term, so you can get a jump on this when the election officially starts.
For the candidates, please keep yourselves under control. As someone told ASUO Senate last Wednesday, this is our opportunity to make politics more appealing. Resist the urge to carry your computers preloaded with Duckweb around because literally no one likes that: No one wants to vote on a campaigner’s computer with a campaigner looking over them, and once one side does it, all sides are trapped into an arms race.
And, though we know candidates have already filed, make sure you are in this for the right reasons and the long haul. Typically over the summer before school starts, we see a handful of senators and other committee members leave when they realize what their full responsibilities will be. Responsibilities move and schedules change, but read your section of the Green Tape Notebook at the very least.
As for the elections board, take grievances seriously and make sure the entire process for them is as public as possible. Last year, grievances flew back and forth and their statuses were murky at best. Stay on your game, and don’t let yourself get swept up in the chaos.
Basically, what we — the Emerald, the editorial board therein and the student body — are asking is: Can we please have a fair, respected and undisputed election?