Following the Undergraduate Council Campaign Trail

Although the Undergraduate Council has been accused of inefficiency and an inability to inspire widespread student support since the October general elections, in recent weeks hundreds of undergraduates have put aside problem sets and missed group meetings to poster and strategize for presidential and vice-presidential candidates. The motives of campaign strategists and early-rising poster teams vary, but most cite a faith in platforms and in the Council's potential for campus change.

Of those interviewed, Noah Z. Seton '00 and vice presidential running mate Kamil A. Redmond '00 have about 75 students on their campaign team e-mail list, with a core group of around 20 daily staff while presidential candidate Chris King '00 said he has a staff of about 50. John A. Burton '01, also a candidate for president, has about 150 people helping with his campaign, of which he said nearly 50 are committed to regular postering. Nicholas J. Stone '00 and Trevor S. Blake '00 said their campaign is powered by a smaller group of students.

"It's not so much a team as a group of friends," Stone said.

Busy schedules filled with coursework, extracurricular activities and socializing, lead many students to pass up the opportunity to help someone else's cause. Nevertheless, candidates have been able to drum up the support of anywhere from half a dozen to more than a hundred friends, blockmates, fellow Council members and student group leaders.

Redmond and Seton said campaign team members are helping with postering as well as speeches, platforms, and panel appearances. In addition to postering with the campaign team, Stone said he and Blake also solicited opinions from students to develop a platform.

"What a campaign team is important for is varied perspective," Stone said. "We have a wide spectrum of views on our team."

"A large part of what we did is contacting students all over this campus to find out what students want," said Stephanie B. Greenman '00, a member of Stone's campaign committee.

Some members of Burton's campaign team are dedicating much of their day to the campaign.

"Ten of us haven't been to class much this week," Burton said.

Members of Burton's campaign team are working from three hours up to the entire day putting up posters, attending debates between the candidates and sending out e-mails. Each of the candidates interviewed said teams have an added impact beyond administrative support.

"Noah and I can only get so many votes, and it's the people we have working on our team, talking us up, that are getting us the votes. You need to have people who believe in your ideas, who believe in what you're saying and can express that to others," Redmond said.

But the impact of team members can be limited.

"They can certainly make or break an election, but if the candidate does not pull their weight, they will not win," Burton said.

Candidates said helping with a campaign is not just a way to be politically active, but also a social experience. Some have held meetings, pizza study breaks, even a cocktail party with the Opportunes. Stone and Blake hosted a brunch for their campaign team, while Seton and Redmond planned pizza meetings.

But beyond the free pizza or breakfast fare, students are compelled to join the teams for a variety of reasons, both personal and political.

"It's because they identify with the vision that we have," said vice presidential candidate Fentrice Driskell '01 of her team's enthusiasm.

"I think people just agree with our platform," Seton said, conceding that, "a lot of them happen to be our friends."

But those who are helping with campaign teams say their primary motives lie in candidates' platforms more than personal ties and in a desire to work toward progress through the council.

"I'm willing to go out and do work for them because I have a pretty good sense of what their goals are. I think they can bring some good to this campus, so I'm willing to help," Jessica A. Bowen '00 said of Seton and Redmond. "It's my way of being involved in the U.C."

Bowen has noticed a tendency among peers to question her dedication to the campaign team.

"People have been asking me a lot over the past week why I'm willing to put so much time into it," Bowen said. "I'm surprised that people have asked that. I don't know why I have to get something out of it personally."

Perhaps the prospect of postering in the wee hours of the morning doesn't have universal appeal on campus, but Bowen said the commitment is worth it in the long run.

"No, I'm not thrilled about 8 a.m., but I'll get over it," Bowen said.

Stone said the commitment team members have made runs counter to charges that students don't trust the council.

"They believe in us and they want to see something good being done by the UC," he said. "It's an example of altruism. They have done an enormous amount of work with really no personal benefit."

Student group leaders also parcel out precious time to support campaigns.

"I think that student group leaders see themselves as inextricably tied to the fate of the Undergraduate council," Redmond said.

Burton said those leaders who joined his campaign cited platform issues as their motive, particularly issues that relate to council effectiveness.

"We're all rallied around our central issue--the U.C. isn't listening to students," Burton said.

Friends and fellow student leaders populate most campaigns, but the bulk of those postering and coordinating late-night strategy sessions are fellow council representatives. Seton estimated that more than half of the council is serving on a campaign team.

"People from the U.C. are obviously really involved in the issues, so they play an active role," he said.

All candidates interviewed said council members who support campaigns will not gain politically kudos by joining their team.

"There's not necessarily a direct political advantage," Stone said. "Which is really nice because you know people are working for you because they want to."

Many candidates actively recruited council members to join their campaign teams, with mixed results. Redmond said there is a definite advantage come election day to having strong council support among campaign staff.

"I think often students who don't know that much about the election will ask U.C. members who they know who to vote for," she said.

Although Stone and others found some council members hesitant to commit to a team, he said refusal "breeds no animosity." King sactually actively focussed outside of the council in recruiting a camapaign team.

"The majority of people are not on the U.C.," he said. "There's a great deal of diversity in the number of people that are helping us."