Vote wisely in coming student elections

By Brian Pierce

On Monday, fellow columnist Lee Feder called for the election of a student trustee who is different than all the rest: Chief Illiniwek. Unfortunately, the Chief, being a retired symbol and not an actual person, will not appear on the ballot, and so Lee is counting on you, the students, to write him in.

It is a novel and entertaining idea, and actually stands every chance of being successful. For the adamantly pro-Chief among you, he’s likely the only candidate who could ever honestly and effectively represent your interests.

For the rest of us, there are real candidates to vote for. Come Tuesday and Wednesday, you will have the opportunity to vote for student senators, members of SORF and of course, a student trustee who will serve as one of three student representatives from each Illinois campus on the board of trustees, a body that makes the final decision on many of the most important issues facing this University.

Some of you won’t vote, thinking it unworthy of your time. Or you just might forget to remember that there was an election going on.

This would be a mistake. Yes, it’s true; student representatives have always and will always put forth toothless proposals, sponsor meaningless events, and generally adopt a style of behavior and pattern of speech that is indicative of insufferable narcissism. But they will also, believe it or not, be making decisions every now and then that genuinely affect the lives of students on campus.

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The big problem for students who want to vote, however, is that it’s difficult to know for whom you’re voting when it seems like all you have to go off of is the font size and color scheme which various candidates have chosen when writing their names in chalk on the Quad (orange and blue always being a popular choice, and making any letter “I” in the candidate’s name extra large and fancy).

But there are ways to learn more about the candidates. There will be a debate sponsored by I-VOTE tonight at 8 p.m. at the Pine Lounge in the Union. The Daily Illini will presumably be putting together some kind of candidate summary right before the elections. And most candidates have created groups on Facebook or have designed Web sites to lay out their policy positions.

Every now and then these resources will provide a useful nugget. For the most part you will have to wade through a sea of empty insights: tuition increases are bad, cultural programming is good, and, of course, we must never tolerate the indignity of being forced to abandon the one tradition that is more important to students than Chief Illiniwek – Unofficial St. Patrick’s Day.

I recommend looking at the Facebook profiles of the candidates. Comparing your favorite music, movies, TV shows and books with their’s can provide more insight than you could ever realize, not to mention looking at political views and, of course, pictures. For example, one trustee candidate, Paul Schmitt, has a picture of himself standing proudly next to Karl Rove, an endorsement I would suggest is of dubious worth.

Personally, and in the interests of full disclosure, I’m supporting the trustee campaign of Katie Dunne (incidentally, the only cute girl running for trustee, and smart as a whip, too.) I’m not asking you to vote for her, though. I am asking you to vote for somebody who, in your estimation, comes off as a real person, not a political operative in training.

Just one final tip: the candidates who blather on and on about the Chief could not, in reality, care less about the Chief. They know an opportunity to manipulate and distract voters when they see one, just as they know full well that the Chief, like it or not, is dead and buried. Regardless of your position, do not vote for these candidates unless you enjoy being taken for a fool. If you insist on making a statement, write in the Chief. Otherwise, please vote for one of the candidates who respects your intelligence.