Low voter turn-out inhibits student voices

By Annie Selak and Amy Chan

Finally, the election chalkings that once covered the sidewalks of our school are washed off. And flyers displaying candidates' names no longer cover the residence hall doors.

Although the election advertisements are gone, they obviously had no impact on the student body.

On April 28, only 686 votes were cast for student body president and vice-president. Yet there are 4,551 undergraduates. That means that only 15 percent of students voted.

It is easy to assume that this low number of applicants reflects the disinterest students have in politics.

But casting a vote takes less than five minutes. Despite the conveniently placed voting booth (it was in front of Benson's fountain from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on election day), students still did not vote.

Are Santa Clara students just too lazy? Maybe that's the case because 85 percent of students did not put any effort towards electing their representatives.

Even more shocking was the low number of candidates. Of the 27 positions available, eight candidates ran unopposed and 12 positions were not filled.

So why aren't people participating in elections, or let alone voting?

Naturally, everyone points to the lack of publicity as a scapegoat. Despite fliers, posters, tables and e-mails, most students claim not to know about the elections.

And sure, there are lots of activities at Santa Clara, causing most students to become "poster blind." But this publicity should not be ignored.

Most students didn't even care enough about the AS elections to attend "Meet the Candidates Night" or the presidential debates.

Don't people care about who represents them? AS is the student's voice.

This is not a responsibility to be taken lightly.

AS takes on duties such as working with the neighbors and police, and providing services, such as DogEars, to the student body. AS also speaks on behalf of the student body in matters dealing with the administration.

Sure, the demanding work of Santa Clara may provide a valid excuse to not vote; especially because students are busy.

In order to lessen the "inconvenience" of voting, AS is working to make Santa Clara an official polling place for the November elections. This can only happen if 500 students register to vote with Santa Clara as their residence.

Students should change the stereotype that young people don't care by marking a ballot and making their voices heard.

Ultimately, the lack of participants characterizes the Santa Clara student body: apathetic. Unfortunately, this apathy is not just affecting AS.

û Annie Selak is the incoming AS president and Amy Chan is vice president.