Billy Joel raffle combined with UA election

Billy Joel is coming to the University to play music and answer questions on April 9 -- but don't start camping out for tickets anytime soon. According to Connaissance co-Director Rich Archer, a Wharton junior, the organization will be holding a modified raffle, rather than a ticket sale, for those interested in attending the event. In an effort to increase voter turnout, the ticket raffle will be connected to next week's Undergraduate Assembly election. Students will have their PennCards swiped by a Nominations and Elections Committee member at the polling places on campus. They will then receive a wristband and an entry form for the show. The next step will be to visit the Connaissance table located in front of Steinberg-Dietrich Hall next Tuesday and Wednesday. According to Archer, Connaissance members will take the entry forms at the table and remove the wristbands. "This helps us keep track of the number of ballots we're giving out," he said. He emphasized that students not wearing a wristband will not be allowed to submit a ticket. According to NEC Chairperson Ning Hsu, a Wharton senior, the PennCard center is able to keep track whether or not students have cast a ballot in the election. "Once they vote, they can't vote again," she said. Part-time undergraduates, graduate students and faculty members' IDs will be checked manually by Connaissance because the UA does not have the capacity to check these IDs by computer, Archer added. And they must bypass the UA elections and proceed directly to the Connaissance table on Locust Walk to participate in the raffle. Winners will be notified by the following Monday via e-mail, according to Connaissance Co-Director Sean Steinmarc, a College sophomore. "They'll also find out where and when to purchase their tickets," he said, adding that the tickets will cost $5. And die-hard Billy Joel fans will have a special chance at winning tickets to the show, Archer said. There is a space on the ballot for students to explain why they are the biggest Billy Joel fans at Penn. "Be creative," Archer said. "We're going to go through the ballots and pick out our 100 favorite responses." These special winners will receive seats in the front 10 rows of Irvine. And the tickets will be bound in a book and presented to Joel along with a Penn sweatshirt, Archer added. Archer explained Connaissance is not forcing people to vote -- but the group is aiming to increase voter turnout by linking the raffle to the elections. He added the system saved Connaissance money because the NEC will be running the card swipers. Hsu said students can vote on Tuesday at Hill College House, 1920 Commons, the Castle and between the Quadrangle and Stouffer from 11 to 7 o'clock. On Wednesday, voters can cast their ballots at the Castle and 1920 Commons between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. "We're just helping out another student organization," Hsu added. According to Steinmarc, another reason the NEC system was chosen was because Connaissance wanted to avoid forcing people to camp out for tickets. "We were trying to avoid just selling the tickets," he said. "In the past, the University has expressed concerns about camping out, and we wanted to avoid any conflict with the administration." The ballot includes two referenda on constitutional reform of student government. Twenty percent of the student body must vote in the election in order for the referenda to be considered for implementation. "Looking at the interest I've seen so far, I would guess we would pass out about 6,000 raffle tickets," Archer said.