Every year, this editorial board takes the time to interview candidates for the internally elected position of Undergraduate Assembly chairman. We do this because despite the fact that UA chairman is elected by just a few dozen students, he or she has become the de facto leader of the entire student body over the last several years.
In the past few weeks, a proposal has been sweeping through student government to turn this de facto role into a de jure role by changing the election for UA chairman into a popular election by the student body.
Although the specifics of this election process — and the duties of this new role — have yet to be determined, we believe that it’s time to include more students in this process. The students at Penn have proven that they are both smart and can be engaged; giving them the chance to vote for the person who will be their face to the administration and the world is the right thing to do.
Student-government leaders and the editorial page of this paper have perennially questioned how to engage more students in their governance. A popular election would help do this by forcing candidates to run on platforms as opposed to slogans and to introduce themselves to greater swaths of the student body.
This debate will continue for the next several weeks; we hope that you, the student, pays attention and voices your opinion. This proposal is by no measure finalized, and questions concerning specifics remain. This proposal intends to be for the students, and it should be by the students. Now is the time to shape this change.
