The 'Get Out the Vote' rabbits are no more.
Our furry friends that popularized Memorial Union expansion and drew the ire of some of our campus' most ardent amateur graffiti artists are soon to be lost to the annals of ASU history.
A staunchly impassioned minority of students took to the polls in cyberspace last week to voice their opinion on campus modernization. In the weeks prior, referendum editorials and letters to the editor dominated The State Press' opinion pages. The front page was more often than not a showcase to the ceaseless bickering over the referendum done by various student governing bodies. Giant banners dotted the campus landscape, imploring students to have their say in ASU's future.
And in the end, voter turnout in last week's referendum to modernize the MU and Student Recreation Complex was some of the highest ever seen on this campus. It was pegged at a staggering 12 percent, meaning that just over 5,000 of the 40,000 some-odd eligible persons voted. According to Undergraduate Student Government President Brandon Goad, student participation doubled from last year's student government elections.
It truly brings a tear to my eye that one out of every eight of us could take time out from our hectic schedules to have our voices heard. Granted, some of us won't be around when the renovation bills are going to show up, and some of us don't frequently utilize the MU or the SRC, but that is little excuse for apathy.
I implore all of my fellow members of the ASU community to give a little more credence to the next electoral contest to come our way. On March 9, polls will open to decide the next mayor of the city of Tempe. Wednesday, in the midst of the battle for a new MU and a truckload of treadmills, Tempe mayoral candidates Dennis Cahill and Hugh Hallman duked it out at the ASU College of Law, in a debate sponsored in part by student government, the Student Bar Association, and the Residence Hall Association.
And as pitiful as it was, turnout for the referendum put debate attendance to shame. In a semester where many of us are still reeling from the ramifications of Tempe's new party ordinance, fewer than 50 souls showed up to hear the candidates' visions for the future of Tempe. In a debate where Hugh Hallman called ASU "Tempe's greatest economic resource," and Dennis Cahill urged students to become involved in city decision making, there were very few students around to take heed.
Mind you, these are the same candidates who some would argue didn't give a damn about ASU or its student population. Hallman, who had rather infamously referred to students as transients in a previous debate, was now all smiles as he talked about ASU's future. And Tempe Councilman Cahill, who last year voted in favor of everyone's favorite party ordinance, made little mention of it as he touted the wonderful neighbors that college students make.
To be fair, Hallman clarified his stance to a group of students at the debate. He claimed that he'd made no reference to students as 'transients,' but merely their 'transient nature.'
Glad we cleared that up.
And Cahill was sure to say how the college-aged residents "add to my life by making me more aware" of what's going on in Tempe.
I don't mean to disparage either of these candidates. I'm not ready to pull a pedestal out for one or both of them, either. But a larger, more pertinent point looms in the background of the whole situation. The only way to make sure that student voices are heard in local politics is for students to go to the polls and exercise their right to vote. Who's to say that we aren't all transients, or don't really care to defend our house parties, if we don't take the time out to have our say in these debates?
According to Cahill, 75 percent of the students at ASU have resident status in Tempe. For those of you who aren't aware, that entitles you to more than just trash pickup and power lines. The real power in this lies in your chance to shape this city and its future, from the sales taxes you pay at the grocery store to the light rail system that is soon to snake its way through your neighborhoods.
As a result, I encourage all of you to make your voice heard next month in the mayoral and city council races. Unless, of course, you're content with your transient status, or too busy defacing campus signage to really care.
Brian Clapp is a biology and political science senior. Reach him at leisurestudies@asu.edu.
