EDITORIAL: Voting for the future of Penn

Freshmen should think carefully before electing their leaders in this fall's student government races. Despite the rhetoric in the candidate statements, Undergraduate Assembly and class board elections really do have the potential to impact student life at Penn. We hope that you, as freshmen, choose to be active at the University, experiencing all that Penn has to offer and working to change the things that you feel need improvement. One way to do this is by voting today. Examine the candidate statements printed in yesterday's Daily Pennsylvanian seriously. Make sure the candidates you vote for share your concerns -- or at the very least express the commitment and energy to do a good job in student government. And if the UA wonders why students sometimes become disenchanted with student government, just take a look at the two-page DP advertisement. It's hard to take people seriously when their candidate statements seem to mock readers' intelligence. But there are plenty of candidates who seem to be creative, dedicated and full of good ideas. We urge you to speak with the candidates and tell them what issues concern you personally. Similarly, we hope that candidates who get elected pay attention to what their peers want. Sure, it's easy to complain about the fee to use Gimbel Gymnasium. But is that issue really important enough to warrant the attention of the UA? The candidates you elect will represent your class for the next year. By voting, you can send a message about what you want the future of the University to be like. See you at the polls.