ASMSU student representative elections are this week. But of the 34 total seats that can be filled by college representatives in ASMSU’s general assembly, currently there are only 15 candidates running for a college representative position.
In 2013 The State News reported 9.2 percent voter turnout, which equaled 2,636 voters out of 28,628 eligible students. While engaging students to vote is a real issue, the problem closer at hand, representatives said, is candidacy turnout.
The college representatives that MSU students vote for are the people who elect the office of the president, which consists of six vice presidents and one president.
If a respective college has open seats that need to be filled, there is an appointment process that takes multiple weeks. During that time the college will miss the vote from that seat.
“That’s an issue because the colleges that don’t usually have as many votes or people running for seats aren’t going to be represented as well by the office of the president,” ASMSU James Madison College representative Wyatt Ludman said.
In order to be considered a candidate to represent one’s respective college, the hopeful candidate must obtain 25 signatures from MSU students, which is meant to engage students who would otherwise neglect elections.
Then, the candidate must achieve a minimum of 25 votes in order to win, and if it is a competitive seat, candidates must acquire the minimum of 25 and any more that are required to win.
Certain members of ASMSU, such as College of Social Science representative Evan Schrage, believe getting 25 votes on top of 25 signatures is arbitrary and superfluous, and doesn’t really engage more students, instead deterring them from running.
“It’s rather unfortunate to think you have the 25 signatures, and then come up short with 24 votes,” Shrage said.
Shrage introduced a bill this year that would have eliminated the 25-vote minimum, but the bill eventually failed in a general assembly vote last week after a long discussion.
Members who opposed the bill reasoned that getting the 25 signatures and votes engages students, and that taking away the minimum would allow candidates to be “lazy,” said Kathryn Mass, ASMSU vice president for internal administration.
Shrage and others believe that eliminating the 25-vote minimum would not create laziness, and instead would just make ASMSU elections like every other political election in the country – the candidate with the most votes wins.
For now, ASMSU officials said they need students to vote, because no matter what the election code says, representatives are in their positions to represent MSU students, and if students feel they aren’t, they have the ability to change that.
ASMSU’s junior class council is hosting a cookout 4:30 p.m. Thursday at the rock on Farm Lane. Students can eat free Conrad’s College Town Grill, Leo’s Coney Island, win prizes and vote for ASMSU representatives.
