The candidates for this semester’s Student Government [SG] Senate elections have filed, and starting this Sunday at 9 p.m. they are going to be campaigning for your support.
Historically, student turnout at Senate elections has been poor, but hopes are high that this year more students will vote in the Senate elections and reject claims that students at UM are apathetic.
The “Bring out the Vote” campaign is going strong, and the first national presidential debate is being held on the UM campus.
Six newly ratified Elections Commissioners each independently promised to increase voter numbers.
All of this, coupled with student mobilization following the closure of the Department of International Studies, is expected to increase student interest in the elections.
A bill was passed today to place a referendum in the upcoming elections ballot. The referendum will ask students to vote for or against a $7.50 increase in the Student Activity Fee to be allocated to Hurricane Productions [HP]. The purpose of the additional funding is to support future HP programs at UM and would, if passed by students, take effect in the Fall 2005 semester.
If you are a constituent of any of the categories up for election, you are eligible to vote in each eligible category for your candidate. You can also vote on the HP proposal and any other referenda added to the ballot.
If you missed filing to be a candidate for Senate elections, you can still get involved in one of the other branches of SG or fill out a form, available on the SG website, to be considered if a position becomes available in between elections.
Two new SG Senators were ratified today though the latter process, showing that even this close to elections, new SG members can be added without winning a single electoral vote.
If you are interested in attending the next SG meeting on Feb. 11, the venue has changed from the UC ballrooms to the Faculty Lounge, located next to the food court. Meeting times are from 4 to 6 p.m.
For more information, visit the SG website at www.miami.edu/studorgs/sg/ and click on Elections.
Amy S. Lawrence can be contacted at aslawrence@umiami.edu.