Since returning from Winter Break, new Daily News columnist Dillon Kimmel has written two columns about the Student Government Association and its upcoming elections. Having dedicated more than two years of my life to the organization, I was quite pleased to see that others were willing to use their column inches to discuss SGA.
What started as excitement ended in extreme disappointment. In fact, the advice he gives about running for SGA executive office is actually quite flawed. I should know - I've done it before and won.
In last week's column, Kimmel said, 'Those who plan to run this year would be well served to learn from past mistakes and plan well in advance.' With this, he references the scandals and problems that have plagued the last three SGA election seasons.
United Initiative and Vote Bare, both of which planned campaigns well in advance, fought through significant cases of smears, sabotage and fines in one of the most ugly campaigns in recent history.
Campus Alliance, the slate for which I served as president, and Andrews-Albritton '08, were both formed in 10 days after no one showed up to the original nomination convention. Both slates had successful campaigns debating the issues during an election season in which negative campaigning and fines were very minimal.
Last year, Cardinal Impact spent months preparing its campaign and was the only slate to show up to the nomination convention, making it a lock for the position, until it was discovered some of the required signatures were forged. This unleashed a roller coaster of an election that saw two additional slates join the fray and members of Cardinal Impact's slate and campaign staff submit forced resignations.
The amount of time taken to form a slate and campaign has no bearing on how the election will go. That comes down to the decision making and integrity of the members of each slate and its campaign staff. While Cardinal Impact did eventually win, one of its competitors, University Coalition, put up a significant campaign showing in a mere three days of planning.
I'm not saying that a slate with zero SGA experience should be voted into office and the organization will magically be reformed. Experience in SGA, or even Residence Hall Association, definitely increases the chances of a slate being successful while in office. But not every member needs to come from SGA. In fact, bringing in some slate members from outside the organization allows the slate to have a smooth transition while still bringing a fresh perspective of campus along with it.
I understand where Kimmel is coming from though, and I do agree with him in one way. Speaking to someone who has experienced running for SGA office and held slate positions can be helpful, but is in no way necessary for a slate to be successful. Nor is Cardinal Impact the only group of people on campus able to give this advice. Nine of the last 12 people to hold executive slate positions are still around campus and many more have been campaign staff or cabinet members.
I have been approached by almost a dozen people during the last year with questions about running for SGA office as well as helping with platform and slate formation. This is help I have gladly given because I believe SGA can be a powerful force for positive change on campus if the right group of people holds the office. This is help I will continue to give if anyone seeks it.
It is my personal opinion that in order to truly be a successful SGA slate through both the campaign and in office, you have to care about this campus and want to do everything in your power to make it better. This can mean going weeks on end with little sleep, missing classes and seeing your grades drop and going up against powerful members of the administration and maybe even faculty and staff that you're close to.
My advice: If you want to run for SGA, do it and do it on your own terms. It doesn't matter if you decide to run the night before the nomination convention, or you decided months ago. As long as you're doing it for the right reasons, it's a good idea. Even if you lose, the experience is an incredible one.
Write to Frank at frhood@bsu.edu.
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