One round to go: USG races still too close to call

Don't worry. So far, no USG candidates are demanding a manual recount in Forbes. But much like the national presidential race, many of last night's USG elections were too close to call. There will be runoffs for the positions of president, vice president, social chair and academics chair beginning online Saturday at 12:01 a.m. and continuing until Tuesday at 11:59 p.m.

In light of the preliminary voting results issued last night, the 'Prince' would like to re-affirm — and in the case of the USG presidential election, revise — its original endorsements.

President

The run-off election for the position of USG president will be between Joe Kochan '02 and David Tukey '02. The Daily Princetonian endorses Kochan for USG president because of his long-standing commitment to the USG and his active support of student groups on campus. We are confident Kochan will meet every challenge the office has to offer and that his diligent hard work will benefit many classes to come. Though his close association with former USG president Spencer Merriweather '00 and outgoing president PJ Kim '01 have made it difficult for Kochan to establish himself outside the confines of the USG, if elected Kochan will be the first engineering student to ever serve as USG president.

Though Tukey has also had extensive experience with the USG, he has not been able to articulate a clear platform for his potential administration.

Vice President

The run-off election for the position of USG vice president will be between Rolando Amaya '02 and Brigitte Anderson '02. The Daily Princetonian re-affirms its endorsement of Anderson. Though she has no prior experience in the USG, Anderson has promised to focus particular attention on issues that are important to minority students and women — issues that have frequently been ignored in past years. She has been an active contributor to many groups on campus and would be a welcome addition to the USG.

Amaya's prior experience with the USG could not make up for his somewhat scattered platform. Though he was in touch with many salient undergraduate issues, his goals for the future were not as focused or as feasible as Anderson's.

Social Chair

The run-off election for the position of USG social chair will be between West Owens '02 and Melissa Kemp '02. We re-affirm our endorsement of Owens, who demonstrated a sincere commitment to increasing the level of student input in planning for social events such as the Spring Concert. His platform is well organized and thoughtful, addressing many of the USG's greatest shortcomings in social planning.

Kemp was not available to share her platform with The Daily Princetonian.

Academics Chair

The run-off election for USG Academics Chair will be between Jacob Hodes '02 and Traci Strickland '02. The 'Prince' re-affirms its endorsement of Strickland and reminds voters of her commitment to assisting undergraduates struggling with their academic course load. This problem deserves more attention than it has traditionally received. We are pleased Strickland is raising this issue with the USG and hope she has the opportunity to share her ideas with the administration.

Hodes demonstrated a strong working knowledge of the USG and its policies, but his platform sprawled across too many issues. Though his emphasis on the 500-student increase outlined in the Wythes report shows a good deal of foresight, his ideas lack a more pointed focus.

If you who have seen even a minute of C-SPAN lately, you know exactly how much your vote counts. For those of you who did not have the opportunity to participate in the first round of voting, this is your last chance — just be sure to double click all the way through the ballot.