Bruin Republicans and Bruin Democrats representatives met in the Great Debate at De Neve Court Tuesday night to volley national issues and energize students before next Tuesday’s election, kicking off a week of Election Invasion activities.
Election Invasion is a coalition of resident assistants whose aim has been to encourage UCLA students to register to vote, educate them about the policy issues they have a say in and amp them up for Election Day.
Assistant Director Alex Skokan said the organization hopes to bring political passions “another notch up” this year because it is an election year.
The event was an open forum for students to hear the key issues in this year’s presidential election by asking representatives for presidential candidates Sen. Barack Obama and Sen. John McCain about their respective candidate’s policies during a question and answer format.
Around 50 students stood in the center of De Neve Court to watch the debate. A few passersby observed from a distance along the sides of the residence halls.
The debate portion allotted each party time to respond to inquiries that provoked heated opinions on everything from a ceasefire in Iraq to alternative energy sources.
What could have been a loud event was handled solemnly by Election Invasion moderators, resulting in scattered cheers for the candidates from students. For the most part, the crowd stood silently throughout the debate.
“This is a really pivotal election, and the perfect opportunity for young voters at UCLA and across America to show that their vote can make a difference,” Skokan said.
Students in the crowd at the Great Debate reflect this energy. First-year undeclared student Omeed Alipour, who stood among the listeners, characterized this election as “the first time since Kennedy that the youth has really been called out.”
“It’s definitely one of the most controversial and emotional elections,” said Maral Parsian, director of Election Invasion. She said it is important for students to develop their own opinion, independent of what they were raised with.
She added that Election Invasion hoped to encourage students to become more involved in the election by educating themselves on the issues in the campaign.
The debate marked the beginning of a week of political events, including a Rock the Vote concert which will be held today in the Tom Bradley International Hall at 7 p.m. There will be special performances by Fanny Pack, Pangea Collective and Rebels of the Grain. There will also be a screening of Michael Moore’s film “Slacker Uprising” on Thursday.