From a governing standpoint, students cannot control much of what goes on within the University of Idaho campus.
Students are constantly impacted by the decisions and processes of university officials, but rarely get a strong say in the matter.
The ongoing UI presidential search is of campus-wide importance and will impact generations of Vandals to come. Although students could provide feedback and attend forums, no direct student votes or voices are ultimately factored into the decision.
ASUI elections provide students that chance to have a voice in university governance.
Not only are students heavily involved throughout the election process, but the ASUI president is nominated solely through student votes.
Voting for the 2019-2020 ASUI president/vice-president ticket and eight senator seats begins 7 a.m. April 1 and will conclude 5 p.m. April 3. Voting links will be emailed to all students through their VandalMail account.
While this sounds like a recipe for success, there is still plenty of room for improvement on the involvement front.
Students have yet to fully embrace this opportunity. Nicole Skinner and Carlos Vazquez, current ASUI president and vice president, won last year’s elections with only 700 votes. That number may seem high, but with a student population of around 10,000, it should be much higher.
To put this into perspective, less than 10 percent of UI students voted for our current ASUI president.
And it’s not only an apparent lack of student interest. Monday’s first ASUI candidate forum centered on 11 candidates, all vying for the eight available senator seats. The main problem? Only three candidates made an appearance, resulting in a forum lasting not even 20 minutes.
If candidates cannot take these elections seriously, then how can students? Not only does this poor turnout limit student voting options, it also spreads the message these elections are less than meaningful.
People in the 18-to-24-year-old voting range turned out to vote in the 2018 midterm elections in record numbers. Despite the common thought that millennial-age voters are disengaged and apathetic, they made their votes count at midterms.
Their votes mattered.
Students have the same power with the upcoming ASUI presidential election. No, those involved in ASUI do not have the same power or control university administrators have. They are, however, the ones bridging the large gap between students and administrators. They are the ones advocating for student needs and influencing administrative policy that directly affects each student. They are even the ones helping set up many of the year-round events we have come to know and love.
Students receive many emails day in and day out — maybe they are considered important or maybe they are moved straight to the trash folder.
When your voting ballot is sent next week, give it a look and follow the links. Read it not just as another email filling your inbox, but a chance to make your voice heard.
Make your vote count. Without it, your voice won’t.
—Editoral Board