With Election Day less than a week away, the UCLA School of
Public Affairs hosted a discussion Wednesday about the propositions
on the Nov. 7 ballot in hopes of gathering student attention and
encouraging students to vote.
Two California State Assembly members discussed reasons in
support of and against each proposition on the ballot, including
Proposition 1A, which would use a sales tax on gasoline to provide
transportation funding, and Proposition 85, which would require
parental notification before a minor could get an abortion.
Despite widespread advertisement and the free lunch offered, the
few undergraduate students in attendance were dominated by a sea of
faculty members.
“I’m surprised more students didn’t turn
out,” said Bethany Hill, a second-year political science
student.
Hill said she enjoyed the informative nature of the discussion
and thought students would have benefited by attending.
“This is a really big election and it takes a lot of time
to really understand the ballot,” she said, adding that she
thought discussions such as this one help explain the ballot
clearly.
“The Proposition Song,” a music video created by the
California Voter Foundation, introduced the discussion. Its
refrain, “It’s the proposition song, ’cause the
ballot is too darn long,” created laughter in the room but
also reminded audience members of the importance of educating
voters about the issues.
“The ballot is confusing and is very long,” said
Mike Feuer, former Los Angeles city coucilman and moderator of the
discussion. “Voters are suffering from ballot fatigue but
that has not deterred legislators from putting more things on the
ballot.”
The discussion aimed to provide an opportunity for the
propositions to be seen by and argued from the point of view of
both Democratic and Republican individuals.
California State Assembly members Fran Pavley, D-Agoura Hills,
and Keith Richman, R-Northridge, were invited to speak because they
are “people who understand policy and understand politically
how to get things done,” said William Parent, associate dean
for advancement of the School of Public Affairs.
Both assembly members are School of Public Affairs distinguished
policy fellows, a program created last year in order to
“bring thoughtful, bipartisan lawmakers to the students of
UCLA,” Parent said.
“(The discussion) was really informative for all voters
that came out,” said Lisa Liu, a fourth-year political
science student.
“I could definitely tell which party each assembly member
was from, but it’s good to get a balance,” she
said.
Kent Kotsiris, a third-year European studies and German student,
was pleased at how much information he gained from attending the
discussion.
“Now I feel I can make a clear and conscious decision when
it comes time to vote,” Kotsiris said.
“Knowledge is power,” he added.