It’s officially campaign week for the FSU Student Government Association (SGA) elections. SGA Election Day is Feb. 26, from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. The lead-up has been unlike any other I’ve witnessed at FSU.
I’ll give you a quick breakdown if you’re unaware of how SGA elections work. Elections happen in the fall and spring, with different positions up for election each semester. Typically, a ballot is filled by candidates who apply in advance to an SGA political party to be slated for the ballot. If selected, the candidate would declare their candidacy as someone running under the umbrella of this party.
As long as I’ve been at FSU, there have been two main SGA parties: Forward and Surge. Before that, other variations of the same two parties with new names have been adopted whenever an official rebrand is necessary.
Forward is the majority party, holding most of the seats in the Student Senate and slapping the winning executive ticket in the past four election cycles. On Jan. 31, Surge publicly announced that it would not slate any candidates for this upcoming spring election cycle.
For some students, the idea of an election without competition was the final push to go public about the ineffectiveness of the current SGA two-party system. Later that same day, the Independent Student Leaders Instagram page was created. This initiative was started by a few students who’ve been unhappy with the current state of SGA politics but unable to do anything because of its partisan nature.
Their page has worked to push interested students to run as independent candidates, particularly in the Senate, providing them with resources to support them in the process.
Don’t get it twisted: Independent Student Leaders is not an SGA party. Instead, they’re an Instagram page dedicated to supporting independent SGA candidates with the process of running for office. They do this by providing them with exposure, connecting them with current and former Senators, and building bridges between them and the students on campus.
“We felt that the party system was hurting FSU, stifling new ideas, and preventing good people from getting elected,” one anonymous organizer said. “We figured we could at least uplift hopeful independent candidates by providing them with an Instagram account to tell the student body what makes them unique as individuals and get their ideas out there.”
“You really can’t be as much of an individual with your own ideas when you’re in a party, but as an independent, you can be your own candidate, accountable only to the voters,” he said.
Another anonymous organizer involved and a former student senator shared similar sentiments.
“I have been involved with SGA since freshman year, and recently, I’ve seen how it’s become increasingly partisan and divisive,” she said. “Now, at least in the Senate, I feel like that spirit of collaboration is under attack. With that in mind, I wanted to bring the focus back to how Senators can serve the student body, not their own agenda.”
The most important thing you can do is read up on the candidates running through their platforms. Then, vote for those who promise the changes you want on campus.
Want to see more HCFSU? Be sure to like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, and Pinterest!