It appears as though the slate A Better Carleton (ABC) is running in the Carleton University Students’ Association (CUSA) elections for the third year in a row.
But are they really?
Just two ABC candidates running for the 2014-15 school year ran as part of the ABC executive slate last year. None of the original ABC executives from the 2012-13 year remain as candidates for this year’s election.
Yet six candidates are still running on that same, well-established brand.
In doing so, they are taking advantage of previous promises, such as a fall reading week and heated bus shelters, made by a team many of them were not even part of.
Continuing a slate for years on end hurts political diversity.
This is especially problematic for voters, who have little motivation to learn what original ideas individual candidates are bringing to each new election. Voters can instead rely on their preconceived knowledge of the established brand with which these candidates have affiliated themselves.
Much like elections for the Rideau River Residence Association, CUSA elections should be refreshed each year, giving new and returning candidates an equal footing from the get-go.
One way to execute this is by having new slate names for each election, so that slates and candidates build their own specific brand and reputation.
CUSA elections should be as different as possible from year to year so that students who are eager to get involved and express their political ambitions can do so, regardless of whether they are connected in some way to previously successful candidates.
