Name: Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. Party affiliation: Democratic Birthday: Nov. 20, 1942 Birthplace/Where he has lived: Biden was born in Scranton, Pa., and lived there until age 10. In his early teens he moved to Claymont, Del. and then moved to Wilmington several years later.

The record for the largest pinata in the world was broken in Philadelphia yesterday. But the pinata itself, to the dismay of the hundreds gathered for the event, stayed intact. A large crowd formed at Washington Avenue and South Broad Street yesterday afternoon to see the breaking of a six-story pinata filled with 8,000 pounds of candy, but many left disappointed after safety concerns caused the breaking to be postponed.

Incumbent James Roebuck, Jr., 63, is running unopposed for the Pennsylvania House of Representatives seat from the district of West Philadelphia. "I hope [the lack of opposition is] confirmation that I've been doing a great job as state rep," he said. Roebuck, a Democrat, has been in office since 1985.

Name: Sarah Louise Heath Palin Party Affiliation: Republican Birthday: Feb. 11, 1964 Birthplace/Where she has lived: Palin was born in Sandpoint, Idaho and moved to Skagway, Alaska as an infant. In 1972, she moved to Wasilla, Alaska, where she lived until college.

Although a Democrat has never held the position of Pennsylvania Attorney General, that could change this year. The three candidates running are Democrat John Morganelli, Republican Tom Corbett and Libertarian Marakay Rogers. Corbett, 59, is the current Pennsylvania Attorney General and has served in this position since 2005.

McCain McCain wants to make the information higher-education institutions report to the government each year available to families to help students make more informed choices. He also wants to simplify higher-education tax credits and federal financial aid.

With Homecoming and Halloween squeezed into one weekend, students most likely appreciated the extra hour of sleep - or party time - that daylight savings time allowed. As the days get shorter, the leaves turn colors, and as the temperature drops, flip flops and shorts are replaced by Ugg boots and sweatpants.

Running for Auditor General of Pennsylvania are incumbent Democrat Jack Wagner, Republican Chet Beiler and Libertarian Betsy Summers. Wagner has been Pennsylvania's Auditor General for the past three years and has a combined total of 30 years of political experience.

Senator Obama is not our savior. He will not solve all our problems in his first hundred days. He will not restore the economy overnight. But while Senator McCain is a candidate with a compelling history of public service, Obama offers a compelling vision for the direction of this country.

It was a frightful Halloween for the Penn women's and men's cross country teams. The Quakers fell short at the Ivy League Heptagonals on Friday in Van Cortlandt Park in New York, as the men finished in eighth place with 193 points, while the women came in sixth with 179 points.

Democrat Chaka Fattah has served Philadelphia well over the past 14 years. His opponent, Republican Adam Lang, simply doesn't match up to his legislative experience. We believe Fattah deserves another term. While we disapproved of his politically-selfish move to run for Mayor while still serving as our Congressman, Fattah has taken a leading role on education initiatives for lower-income students and for health care reform.

It's the economy, stupid. In the wake of significant financial losses, a massive federal deficit and weak job growth, this election's most pivotal issue is, not surprisingly, the economy. Here's where the candidates stand: TAXES McCain McCain plans to maintain the current tax rate structure in which the highest income tax rate is 35 percent, and he plans to maintain the capital gains tax rate at 15 percent.

For students hoping to snatch the elusive summer internship in business, there's a new company for hire. Today marks the launch of Get Ahead Advice, a service founded by four Wharton seniors to guide students through the job search, application and interview process for banking, consulting and other popular business sectors.

For 60 students, encouraging their peers to vote is more than civic engagement - it's homework. Introduction to American Politics, a Political Science course, is offering four special recitations this semester, in which students are required to participate in Penn Leads the Vote activities in addition to extra coursework.

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Should the City charter be amended to merge the Fairmount Park Commission and the Department of Recreation into a newly created Department of Parks and Recreation? Philadelphia currently has two separate organizations charged with overseeing the city's parks and recreation facilities.

It was a fitting end to Senior Day. Ten minutes into overtime, senior Rachel Eng took a pass from classmate Nina Ferrier on a two-on-one, shimmied around a diving Brown keeper, Caroline Washburn, and lifted the game-winner over an onrushing defender. "Nina gave me a great pass," said Eng, who scored in her fifth-straight game.