Taking school elections seriously

The upcoming presidential election isn’t the only political race causing a stir at Lawrence High School. The recent class and student government association (SGA) elections have been a hot topic among students lately. 
These events are often written off as noting more than 
glorified popularity contests, but that’s not necessarily the case. While popularity certainly plays a role, it’s not paramount. Perhaps the biggest factor is the goals of each candidate.
Students tend to vote for the person whose goals they agree with most, and the people who they think will best execute those goals. “People who get positions because they’re popular make lots of promises, but they can’t keep them. If they run again, then people know they shouldn’t vote for them” said sophomore Lily Cervantes.
As Cervantes suggests, previous experience also plays a large role in choosing who to vote for. Many of the candidates already have experience. The extent to which each candidate was successful in their past positions greatly influences their odds of getting elected for the next year.

Some students don’t become involved in student government until high school, but this doesn’t mean they’re completely disregarded. Other leadership positions within clubs or sports and apparent leadership qualities are also taken into account. However, attainable goals and previous experience don’t mean much unless you have a way to share those things with the student body, which is why a strong campaign is essential.
“I care about the way a candidate presents themselves, so their campaign video and posters are a big deal to me. I vote based on the way I perceive them through these things” said junior Bradley Aboua.
A perfect example of a student achieving success through smart campaigning and focusing on attainable goals is the election of Brandon Brumm as the senior SGA president. Brumm confessed that he’s “never been the type to win a popularity contest”, so he and many others were pleasantly surprised by his win. Brumm was quite active in his campaigning, handing out business cards as early as May.
He also posted many comical campaign posters, citing pop culture references. The thing that most solidified his win was his campaign video. His unique video depicts him in a suit and tie, sitting in front of a video of a fire place, as Kanye West’s song “Graduation” plays in the background. Brumm spoke about some of his goals, such as the reinstatement of an open campus for underclassmen and replacing the trees that had to be cut down due to disease. Now that he’s won, he’s working towards these goals.
Some may wonder, why hold school elections at all? Many of the students in my class, me included, will be able to vote in the 2016 presidential elections. Aside from providing officers with valuable leadership experience, it provides voters with experience on how to pick which candidate to vote for, in preparation for upcoming local, state and federal elections. Evidently, it’s more than a popularity contest or a charade.