After an extension of the deadline to apply to run, only five Boston University students will vie for top Student Union positions on April 18, and only one race will have multiple candidates.
Only five students declared candidacy following the first deadline of March 27. The elections commission extended the deadline to announce candidacy until the end of April 9, but candidates still remained sparse.
“We decided on two things,” elections commission chairman David Sideman, a College of Arts and Sciences senior, said. “The first thing: We’re going to allow students to declare their candidacy up until the stroke of midnight on April 10th. But, other candidates already started campaigning. This year, we’re also allowing the option of a write-in ballot.”
However, Sideman said the committee will not change the date of the Union election to attract more candidates.
“We’ve already pushed it back because of Passover and Easter,” he said. “We didn’t want the elections to interfere with the holidays. We also already have the election page set up with [the Information Technology Office] with getting the page up for voting.”
Student Activities Office Leadership Development Program Coordinator Colleen Quinn said the number of students running was unexpected.
“It’s a pretty small number, and in all honesty, it’s pretty hard to see,” she said. “When the number came in, I was really surprised, but more disappointed. I don’t really know what’s going on.”
Unopposed presidential candidate Brooke Feldman said while campaigning this past week, students’ lack of knowledge about the Union became apparent.
“I’d really like to see more people get involved next semester,” the School of Education sophomore said. “From what I’ve seen, it seems a lot of people don’t know a lot about the Union or about the elections.”
Feldman said one of her campaign promises is to “make the members of the Student Union more visible.” She said the small number of candidates in the election could be due to the type of exposure the Union has had.
“We’ve had a lot of bad press this year, and I think some people, even though there are perks to the job, they don’t want to take all of the responsibilities and the criticism,” she said.
Similarly, vice presidential candidate Mark Dicristofaro said the coverage regarding the Union may have deterred people from running.
“I think that the amount of candidates in this year’s election is disappointing,” the College of General Studies sophomore said. “The Union got a very bad rep this year by the press–so while I am disappointed in the low candidate turnout, I can understand why people wouldn’t be jumping at the opportunity to serve.”
Quinn said students on campus may not realize the influence they can have on the BU community.
“The average student body doesn’t see what kind of ‘power’ they really have,” she said.
Vice presidential candidate Tyler Ramaker said the Union’s current condition could be a deterrent to potential candidates.
“I think the number of people is a symptom of the state of the Union and I firmly believe that the Union can be better and a valuable resource to students,” the CAS junior said.
Quinn attested to the impact a large number of students can have on a university.
“Can you imagine if 18,000 students united under something?” she asked. “That’s amazing. It’s a matter of a few people who are willing to care.”
As far as getting more students involved in voting, Sideman said the elections commission has been working on ways to spread information on platform issues, including the upcoming Union debate Monday night.
“We compiled a lot of ideas about how to encourage people to get out and get involved,” he said. “One of the main things is going to be the elections debate.”