When the names of candidates for student government were announced last week, there was a refreshing surprise: There are four students running for president instead of the usual two candidates from Students First! and Bruins United.
It’s unlikely the independent candidates will win because both slate candidates are current councilmembers and because many students and student groups who will vote already have their minds made up. And so, the dirty-politicking two-slate system that we have become accustomed to will likely continue into another year.
In the last few years, it seems that student government has become dominated by these two parties, or slates as they call themselves. This system comes with an abundance of bickering and hurts the council and all students because issues become unnecessarily political.
But the Undergraduate Students Association Council hasn’t always been a two-party affair impossible for third parties and independents to crack into, nor should it be in the future.
The council currently has 13 seats, 10 of which are competitive during elections. USAC candidates running with the slates are often former councilmembers or those who have worked in student government offices.
While this system makes sense because experience with the bureaucracy of USAC is advantageous for many positions, it only acts as a catalyst for the negative feedback loop of party politics because USAC members naturally pick staff from their own party.
But before our recent two-slate system, USAC politics was thriving. Most elections since 1998 featured four candidates for president. In fact, in 2000, an independent candidate actually won the presidency. A combining of slates into what is now Students First! and the emergence of Bruins United in the last five years has left us with real two candidates to vote for.
So what can be done to improve the system? Outside of a substantive increase in the size of the 13-person student government, which may be necessary as the student body grows, the election calendar and Elections Code can be reformed.
Currently, candidates are given one week to campaign, and their candidacy is announced one week before campaigning. That works well for the slates because they prepare months ahead of time and can quickly mobilize their combined resources.
But it becomes difficult for independents to convince many students and student groups in just a few days why they shouldn’t vote for a party they normally support. Adam Swart, who is running for president as an independent, said that there is little he can do to get endorsements from many groups, like the Greek community and cultural clubs, that are historically tied to one of the slates.
“I wish I had more time,” Swart said.
Many students will cringe at the thought of a longer campaigning period because it means more fliering, more wooden boards on Bruin Walk and more drama. But it also means we actually get to learn about the candidates.
It means students will be less likely to vote along slate lines, more students will be drawn into understanding what USAC is, and more students will learn about the candidates.
In the past, voting for USAC members was done in two rounds. If no one received 50 percent of the votes, there was a runoff between the top two vote-getters. So if an independent beat one of the slates’ candidates, that person would have a serious shot at the seat, because the party whose candidate didn’t make the runoff would likely vote for a successful independent than a rival party.
Currently, votes are redistributed automatically, removing the potentially independent-friendly runoff system.
But it’s the two-slate system that’s discouraging independents from running in the first place, and recognizing these slates is the first step in addressing problems in the system. The Elections Code, as it is currently, does not recognize slates or parties, said Patrick Ahrens, chair of the Elections Board.
The code should address how slates can act, which is very different from the actions of individual candidates, and more importantly non-candidate members of slates. Elections Board can take action against candidates, but if a party breaks the code, there is no recourse for the party.
Outlawing slates would be going too far. Students have the right to affiliate as they wish.
But governing how slates can act responsibly and defining appropriate punishments for when they don’t are changes needed in the current 29-page Elections Code.
To be clear, our system isn’t broken. USAC functions well and, generally speaking, accomplishes its mission. But we should not wait until the system breaks, because fixing it will be too difficult.
Encouraging more independents and third parties may seem counterintuitive to councilmembers because they’re part of one of the slates, but the move will benefit the student body in the long run.