According to the turnout in the Student Government elections, the campus community is moving forward and doing its part to enact change on campus. Both the initial election and Tuesday’s runoff election had twice as many students vote than the 2006 election did. An unheard of 6,000 students voted in the runoff election. This represents a remarkable upswing of interest in the SG elections, and those who took the time to log onto PAWS and vote deserve to be commended. The importance of voting cannot and should not be understated, regardless of what level of government the vote will affect. In our democratic society the only way to ensure changes can be made is to do one’s part and vote. This space has often been used to criticize various decisions made by SG, but this time the body deserves recognition because the elections offered students a wide variety of potential leaders who could best represent their needs. All four presidential candidates did their part in raising interest in the student’s government. While it looked as though the elections would become bogged down in procedural complaints that would have resulted in the University Court having to get involved in the election of the president, parties on both sides of the complaints opted to postpone any UCourt involvement until after the election. This was a necessary and important decision because the students must be able to decide who will lead them and serve as a liaison to the administration. That is not to say that rule breaking and unethical behavior should be tolerated, but getting caught up in petty quibbles serves no one. The courts should not be used to point fingers and smear anyone’s name but instead should be reserved for important and potentially damaging situations. Along those lines, the results of the runoff election should stand, and the courts should be left out of the decision. Twenty percent of the student body’s voice has been heard, and that voice should not go unnoticed. The student body should also continue to do its part and let SG know what the students think of their decisions. The students of this University have shown that they can shake off apathy. This is a positive step for the University, and it should continue in the future.
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