Last year, I had the opportunity to volunteer as chief of staff for one of the Associated Students University of California, Davis (ASUCD) senators. I had been scrolling on the ASUCD vacancy page randomly one rainy, Davis day to see if there was anything worth applying for when I saw this opportunity. Once I filled out the application and was interviewed for the position, my originally bare schedule which was only dotted with four scheduled classes, quickly grew as I attended meetings throughout the entirety of each week. Although that may sound a tad boring ─ it most definitely was not. In fact, I had a front row seat when it came to UCD politics, and as an English and Political Science double major, I lived for the tea that was spilled every meeting because I loved knowing what was happening around campus. I had the chance to attend meetings that were about events and on-campus situations that I felt mattered or at least should matter more to the student population. This front row seat led to my being asked to help draft resolutions that were brought to the senate floor during their weekly senate meetings because my voice mattered ─ all of our voices do.
As election season here at UC Davis inches closer, take a moment to educate yourself on those who are running and what they are running for, as well as some of the important issues that we have the chance along with the obligation to vote on. It doesn’t always seem like every little referendum or election affects us all personally, but that does not minimize their impacts. The ASUCD Winter Quarter elections are important as ─ not many know ─ but we are not only due to elect six new senators, but also a new President and Vice President. Not only that, but there is a referendum on the ballot that has laid Unitrans at a crossroads due to a need for more funding in order to continue to serve the amount of students that it does every day of the week all year round. Whether you take the bus or not, whether you agree with the referendum or not, take into consideration that issues are put on ballots for a reason and voting is how each student can exercise their opinion.
A year ago, I wrote my second Her Campus article ever on the importance of ASUCD to try and foster, to the extent that I could, a mentality among students who can push to begin exercising the autonomy we have as UC Davis students. Unfortunately, from my perspective, I feel as if ASUCD is still getting brushed off as the voter turnout on our campus last February was measured at 10% of the student population. There are more than 30,000 students on this campus and here we are letting 10% of the students make our decisions for us. You don’t have to be into politics to know that there is something wrong with that number. So, for those of you still following along with me, our winter elections are February 19th-21st, it doesn’t take long to vote, AND it can be done online here. There you can vote and also check out the platforms for those who are running for Senate as well as the candidates on the executive ticket. Keep in mind that our opinions matter. Your opinions matter, which is why ASUCD matters. Students are what make ASUCD relevant because it is made up of students like you. If you want to know more about ASUCD and the units it runs (because it is not only a student government) take a look at their website or my informational article from last year “ASUCD Does Matter.”
Oh, and please don’t forget to vote this week!