Perhaps I shouldn’t be surprised that the only part of the Emerald’s suggestions for reforming the ASUO elections process with which I agreed was the portion in which I was directly quoted. After neglecting to endorse an executive candidate or even run any significant coverage of the recent ASUO elections, the Emerald editorial board would take it upon itself to critique the process, suggesting such ideas as decreasing direct outreach, preventing non-ASUO students from running for executive positions or even opining that a simple majority of students isn’t sufficient enough for determining the winners of elections.
To most fans of democracy, decreasing outreach, stifling majority will and locking outsiders out of the process would seem unlikely solutions for improving student government. But in light of the admittedly flawed ASUO elections process, here are some alternative suggestions for reform:
1. Require executive candidates to get signatures to appear on the ballot. When Nick Warren and I decided to run a joke campaign for president, all that was required was filling out a simple application form in the ASUO office. These five minutes of paperwork granted us access to the ballot, the official voter’s guide, the executive debates and news coverage by campus media outlets. That’s too much power for too little cost. In order to prove they are serious about running, executive candidates should be required to obtain some number of signatures to qualify as a candidate. If this process seems familiar, it’s because the same mechanism is used in many federal and state elections. A signature requirement would provide an objective barrier to entry that would require real work on the part of candidates without freezing non-ASUO students or protest candidates like Cimmeron Gillespie out of the process. As a joke candidate in this year’s election, I can guarantee that I would not have been on the ballot if this requirement was in place.
2. Allow ASUO candidates better access to University resources. Part of the reason campaigns work so hard to pester students with canvassing is because the University provides few opportunities to explain the ASUO or its elections process to students. If the Office of Student Life were to distribute an email on the first day of spring term with information about the ASUO and each of the campaigns, this would go a long way toward increasing visibility and legitimacy of the campaign process. Similarly, emailing students a “receipt” of major services their incidental fee pays for each term would allow more students to understand the importance of electing quality leadership.
3. Make the first week a time for campaigning, not voting. Part of the reason why ASUO campaigns may seem overzealous is because there are not enough hours to educate and reach out to students about their platforms and plans. 80 hours is simply not enough time to have meaningful discussion or debate about important ASUO issues while simultaneously prompting students to vote. Delaying the primary elections until the second week would decrease this pressure and increase the ability of students to evaluate campaigns.
4. Don’t confuse “annoying” with “bad.” Several recent opinion pieces in the Emerald have bemoaned how annoying it is to be canvassed during ASUO elections. They’re right — it is annoying to be approached about politics. But that outreach is also necessary and desirable for a functioning democracy — even one composed of students. Political campaigns in the real world rely heavily on direct contact to reach out to voters, and it’s often the best method for educating people about issues or explaining the importance of voting. It’s popular among some students to say “apathy is a human right.” They may be correct, but so is advocacy. Reaching out to students to explain to them the importance of the ASUO is the best example of the kind of outreach that many complain our student government lacks. We should be advocating for more outreach, not less.
I strongly encourage ASUO President-elect Ben Eckstein to consider these reforms and others as he enters office. The student power provided by the ASUO is too important to allow farcical practices like my executive campaign to continue.
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Letter: Alternative strategies needed for flawed election process
Daily Emerald
April 12, 2011
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