I hate to say it, but I agree with Jonathan Kalinski for once. He was right that in real politics this is how the game is played. The Gauchoholics are bitter about the election results, and they will try to cut the lifeline of SAC since they still have control over Leg Council. I disagree that this is how A.S. Legislative Council should be run. I think it is time we disbanded the party system; we need to go back to individual base candidates. By running on party associations, voters are basing their decisions on a specific party by name and not on the views or the qualifications of the individual candidates.

The party system was intended to bring accountability to A.S. Most of us are only going to be here for four years. Most of the voters are underclassmen, and lots are freshmen. Which means a bulk of us has no idea what happened with the election results of last year, so accountability is bullshit. The party system has divided Leg Council into factions; this is the reason that Leg Council is ineffective. It is going to be lopsided, with the minority having little say at all.

Even though I ran with SAC, I am not happy with the results at all. I felt that the people voted on a straight party line and didn’t care to read the candidate statements or go to the debates. I know we are busy people, but voting is a responsibility and we should spend more time on it. I know you think that A.S. elections are stupid and they don’t really matter, but if you go to Leg Council meetings, you will find out that they actually have a lot of power in delegating money to different campus organizations. They are actively working to lobby for student voice on the statewide and national level. If you don’t participate, it means your voice is left out.

I felt that we should have voted for a neutral IVP who was experienced and had the ability to be fair and work with both sides. The voters should have selected a split council, so that we could have a board that represented a wider spectrum of the student population. But instead, we are going to have a lopsided board with only SAC concerns being represented next year. I disagree with Mr. Kalinski: I don’t think the Gauchoholics are going to lose on every issue. SAC is a reasonable group and I don’t think they would resort to undemocratic means to silence the minority, especially since they have the experience of being in such a position this year.

I for one will vow to keep Leg Council fair and equal; I will dissent from party lines if necessary. I was elected as an individual, and I will work as an individual. If you want to accuse me of being disloyal to SAC, then fine. I dedicated myself for the last four months working on their campaign, and I didn’t even need SAC to get elected. I attended everyone one of their meetings and helped out whenever I had time. By the way, I am still proud of being part of SAC.

Edward Yan is an incoming On-Campus Representative who ran with the Student Action Coalition.