Every year, when freshman elections roll around, we’re reminded of the same thing — freshmen don’t know Penn yet. That’s not a criticism of the candidates or even the process; it’s just a fact.
Last year, we endorsed freshman candidates, hoping to find the few who ran on platforms that covered issues beyond dining-hall food and school spirit. The year before that, we urged student government to hold freshman elections in December so freshmen could get acclimated before figuring out how to leave their mark on campus. Neither were even close to being perfect solutions.
Ultimately, the substance of freshman elections worries us — and it worries the rest of campus. The campaigns will come down to the catchiest raps and the most memorable YouTube videos. While we’re not surprised — all elections, at any level, echo high-school homecoming contests more than most politicos would like to admit — we do admit that our hopes were up a little bit this year. Idealism is hard to quash.
To the freshmen running: Good luck to all of you. If you don’t win your election, stay plugged in to campus and its issues — you will find yourself a stronger candidate sophomore year if you wish to run again and affect change through student government. To those who win, congratulations, and remember that campaign season is only two weeks out of your time at Penn. Penn is not simple, and you’re going to have to learn its ins and outs very quickly. We hope you take your job with more seriousness than is displayed in your campaigns.
