Four Seek Council Chairmanship; Tight Race Seen in Vote Tonight

The Harvard Council for Undergraduate Affairs meets tonight to elect officers for the coming year. Most observers agree the session will be long, and many predict a heated contest for chairman.

Four candidates, two of them sophomores, will definitely seek the chairmanship. John R. "Rusty" Taylor '65 will probably walk into the meeting with the largest block of votes, but supporters of challengers Richard T. "Tom" Seymour '64, Charles F. Doran '64, and John P. Russo '65 were confident last night that they hold enough voting power to force at least two ballots.

Taylor, who headed the last Combined Charities Drive, has reportedly been campaigning furiously, and opponents have charged him with promising committee chairmanships for votes. Members cool to Taylor's chairmanship aspirations also point out that be is a sophomore and have challenged his handling of the Charities drive.

Some observers have detected a shift in the political winds towards Seymour, who decisively whipped Taylor in the Lowell House election for representative at large. (Taylor later gained the House Committee appointment on a close ballot.)

Seymour headed last fall's explosive investigation of the dining halls and has also served as head of the Freshman Affairs committee. His backers claim his experience with the administration could aid the Council, but skeptics have questioned his leadership abilities.

Members sympathetic to Doran say their candidate may not be as forceful or informed as Seymour or Taylor, but maintain that he will be more successful in guiding the Council through controversial issues. Doran, presented by his spokesmen as a hard worker, was in charge of the recently completed report on the student union. Detractors say, however, that he lacks the drive to apply pressure on the administration.

Russo is a sophomore, and may have trouble convincing the Council he has the experience for the job. His report on the libraries last fall has drawn praise, however, and several members have proposed him for the vice-chairmanship.

Should Russo run for vice chairman he will face Reed H. Ellis '65, a transfer student from Florida. Ellis has been working hard for election, but his inexperience with the College may hurt him.

Members of the present Executive Committee have refused to commit themselves to any candidate, preferring to wait for the usually gruesome question period before making their weight felt