SGA votes to keep party system

Polling system inconclusive

By: CAROLYN CRIST

Posted: 4/4/07

After two weeks of polling students, two opposing polling results and nearly two hours of debate, the Student Government Association decided late Tuesday to keep its current party system for elections.

A bill written by SGA Attorney General Justin Shepherd stated only candidates running for SGA president and vice president would be allowed to run under a party affiliation.

The bill failed with 11 assenting and 13 opposing.

Senators would have been prohibited from running with executive members, combining funds or endorsing fellow candidates.

"Abolishing parties would make SGA open to all individuals," Shepherd said. "It's about equal opportunity."

The perception of the party system in SGA is that it is elitist and formed by one group of people, he said.

The bill was tabled at the March 20 meeting because senators had not asked students' opinions. SGA formatted a seven-question survey to gage reactions to the party system.

The poll was distributed manually around campus and electronically on the SGA list-serv.

Although the majority of the 136 students who were polled by hand said the party system negatively affected SGA elections, the majority of the 174 students polled online said the exact opposite.

It was up to the senators to decide and debate which set of data was plausible.

"These polls are not scientific, but they are suggestions," Shepherd said. He quoted free responses from the survey, saying the party system prevented them from running for SGA.

Sen. Claire Schroeder, who ran as an independent this year, said many people told her not to waste her time by running alone.

Matt Suber, former SGA president who was elected under the party system, said the system was only a way to circumvent funding caps on candidates.

"Perception is reality," he said, and if the student body perceives SGA as elitist and a candidate without a party as a failure, then it is must be addressed.

Sen. Matthew Martin said, "The party system isn't perfect, but it would be best if it were endorsed and regulated."

Sen. Connor McCarthy concluded the debate by saying the party system helps cohesiveness. Without parties, it would take too long to create and enact ideas.

"It takes so long to get the ball rolling," he said.

However, both polls reflected that diversity and number of candidates would increase if the party system had been abolished.

Students expressed in the online poll that voter turnout would decrease if parties were abolished.

In other news, an open constitution and codes meeting will be held today from 3 to 5 p.m. in SLC 148 to address concerns with the new constitution.