Commissioner candidates tied to slates face issue of “˜de-politicizing’

Slates provide a pool of resources and moral support for their
candidates. Independents have the satisfaction of not having to
align with slate lines. For the seven commissioner candidates,
choosing whether to join a slate has influenced their campaigns,
which culminate with the undergraduate student government election
starting today.

Four commissioner candidates are running under slates and are
making it an eminent part of their campaigns, while the three
others have opted out of slate lines and are running independent
““ all three are unopposed.

While some contest that commissioner offices should not be
politicized with the inclusion of slates, others say slates are an
important asset and offer more support for the candidates.

Slates are groups of candidates running with similar goals and
ideologies. They often pool their resources and campaign together.
The ones this year are Student Power!, Bruins United, Bruin
Liberation Movement and Future Front.

Commissioners are responsible for representing students’
concerns as they are dictated by their office. For example, the
Facilities commissioner is primarily concerned with issues
pertaining to school facilities and students’ use of
them.

Recently, the issue of “de-politicizing commissioner
offices” was brought up with the senate proposal by current
general representative candidate, Brian Neesby. He argued to take
voting power away from commissioners and give that power to a
legislative body of 20 elected officials.

The argument against the senate proposal and for the slate
involvement in the campaign of commissioners is that “you can
work as a collective under the same goals. It also gives you a
chance to associate yourself with the people who have experience
and ability to do what they are doing,” said Todd Hawkins,
the candidate for the Cultural Affairs commissioner running with
the Student Power! slate. Hawkins is unopposed and said he still
chose to run with a slate because he shared the slate’s goals
and its mission.

Like Hawkins, Michelle Sassounian, candidate for Academic
Affairs commissioner with Bruins United, said she is running with a
slate because her office deals with issues rather than programming,
which is why she feels it is important to run with a slate that is
reflective of student needs.

The current Academic Affairs Commissioner, Eligio Martinez, said
he did not see slates influence anything when he was in office,
since the majority of the council chose to work together.

Martinez also said he recognizes running with a slate as
advantageous because it provides an opportunity to work with people
who share similar visions. Martinez further said that ultimately,
even the independents ended up working with council members that
had been with a slate.

“Slates do not define the job, the candidate does,”
said Joe Vardner, the Facilities commissioner candidate under the
Bruins United slate.

“They do help me though because they offer support,”
Vardner added.

Unlike most candidates, some still chose to run independent as
they saw it more advantageous.

Tracy Pham, the candidate for Student Welfare commissioner, said
she refused to join a slate because she “just likes the idea
of doing what the students want.”

“I believe the (Student Power! and Bruins United) both
have good characteristics, but it’s a shame that both slates
have to be so separated from each other. Being independent allows
me to bring neutrality to this issue,” Pham said.

The current Student Welfare commissioner, Jason Avila, voiced
similar justifications as Pham for the importance of running
independent as a commissioner. “It’s what you think is
best for the people. Everything is your decision and you
don’t have to follow slate lines,” Avila said.

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