Or do they? This year, all four of the positions have one candidate. The elections, a vital and necessary part of our student government, will therefore have little to no impact on who fills each of the positions in the fall. Although technically fair, the election will also likely be fairly boring.
While The Student does not endorse any candidate (particularly since there is but one candidate per office to endorse), we believe that an increase in options in the elections would result in an increase in candidate quality and even an increase in student participation in the elections. Imagine! The Executive Council wannabes would be forced to engage in campaigns and to inform the student body of their views, ideas and plans. The candidates may even clash on certain issues and actually have to justify their stance in the face of dissent. The bulletin boards would be dotted with posters, the Val atrium would be flanked by campaign tables and the sidewalks would be colored with candidates’ names in chalk. But this year, the candidates can rest easy in the days leading as they are virtually secured a win (unless an unlikely massive write-in vote campaign were to spring up today).
Election turnouts already tend to be dismally low, especially for Senate and Executive Board elections. And why should students vote tomorrow? There is only one option (unless, of course, that huge write in campaign happens, which wouldn’t be a bad thing). With this lack of choice, it is not surprising that many students do not even bother to click on the link to vote for their Executive Board. They are probably asking, as we do now, do the votes even matter? Moreover, the lack of campus awareness of the four candidates makes it seem unlikely that the turnout will be high tomorrow.
Even Speech Night, certainly more entertaining than logging on to the online vote, is met with a small attendance, which is likely boosted mainly by the ever-effective free pizza incentive. Is the student body apathetic? At a school that prides itself in its students’ engagement with the Real World and Things They Care About, we don’t seem to be living up to our reputation.
Other colleges take measures to reward student council representatives with financial incentives. While such rewards would likely not increase the quality of candidates, they highlight a question. What would it take to make more people run for office? And, more importantly, why don’t people run any way?
The problem lies in the student body. While a few brave souls have stepped up and entered into the executive race, where are their opponents? At Amherst College, we find it highly unlikely that there is only one person in the entire student body capable and qualified to serve in any of these positions. However, as indicated in the candidate list, it is apparent that the individuals who could serve, the individuals who would be a good representative of the students in the Executive Branch of the AAS, are simply unwilling to put in the work.
The fact that every executive position has only one candidate is embarrassing. At this point, it is up to individuals in the student body to step up and participate in the student government. It is often a wonder to this editorial board that so many students participated in their high school newspaper, yet now seem to have relinquished all interest in these pages. The same appears to be happening with student government. In a student population made up of high school class presidents and officers, we believe there should be no shortage of eager candidates. Perhaps there is less incentive, with no looming college applications to fill out and admissions committees to dazzle. Whatever the reason, there is no dearth of ability among Amherst students. We strongly encourage anyone interested in student government to break loose from their inhibitions and enliven our lackluster campus politics.