Before last week’s primary elections, the Daily Bruin
endorsed Doug Ludlow for the office of Undergraduate Students
Association Council president.
Running as an independent, Ludlow could not muster enough votes
to survive the primary election. Of the remaining two candidates,
Allende Palma/Saracho is clearly the better one.
Palma/Saracho’s experience as internal vice president puts
him in good position to lobby on behalf of students against
expected cumulative progress and for changes to BruinGo!. Also,
Palma/Saracho correctly treats declining enrollment among
underrepresented minorities seriously. Most importantly, he has a
record of working with other council members toward concrete goals,
like a diversity requirement and the defeat of Proposition 54.
Josh Lawson, in contrast, doesn’t always play well with
others. As a general representative, he rarely programmed or
lobbied with other councilmembers, preferring to trumpet his own
achievements instead. Even among members of the old Students United
for Reform and Equality slate ““Â which Lawson was part of
last year and which he effectively abandoned this year ““ he
has many detractors. Whether because of his go-it-alone style, his
inflammatory comments about Students First! and SURE, or his votes
against resolutions supporting the LGBT community, Lawson has
alienated too many people to lead a council that must work together
to get things done.
The irony of course is that Lawson presents himself as
everyman’s candidate, strongly the opposite of the
“elite” Students First!. But while Palma/Saracho and
Students First! took steps ““ modest though they were ““
to expand their base, Lawson refused to stay with SURE, a much
broader student coalition than his new creation, the Equal Access
Coalition.
Ңbull;Ӣbull;Ӣbull;
The Bruin strongly reiterates its endorsement of Genevieve
Espinosa for internal vice president. Her opponent in this
week’s runoff, independent Darren Chan, was the worst of the
original four candidates for the office. She was the best.
Chan’s ideas are both unspectacular and underdeveloped
““ he proposes to “increase USAC’s
visibility” and “provide a forum” to increase
race awareness. He prides himself on not having any campaign
promises.
“There is NOTHING on my platform that I won’t be
able to deliver,” he wrote in a statement. That’s
probably because there was almost nothing there to begin with.
Ңbull;Ӣbull;Ӣbull;
For the office of general representative, The Bruin originally
endorsed two of the remaining six candidates: Brian Neesby and
Jenny Wood. (Best wishes, Mooch.)
Both Neesby and Wood have enthusiasm, passion and a proven
record ““ and they deserve votes. Andy Green and Tommy Tseng
are both capable candidates with experience in student leadership
positions. Both would be stronger council members than the final
two candidates.
Anneli Villarin does not have much relevant experience and has
unremarkable ideas. Alonso Martin Del Campo, a slate-filler, stands
out as the weakest of the candidates. As inexperienced as he is and
with almost no platform, he should not be seeking office.