Mark Fiore: Encourage debate and competition

Politics infested Penn's campus over a year ago as Republican Sam Katz sharply challenged Democrat John Street for mayor of Philadelphia. In a city where Democratic voters outnumber Republicans 7-2, the battle was like none ever seen in the region.

On campus, the duel between the Republican outsider and the Democratic insider drew keen interest from previously apathetic Penn students. Before long, the student group, Penn for Katz, formed to support the Republican candidate.

A day after the group received attention in The Daily Pennsylvanian, several students formed a rival organization to support Street, Friends of the Democratic Party. As the competition heated up in the election, so did the rivalry between students supporting Katz and those supporting Street.

Banners praising Street flew on Locust, while buttons emblazoned with "Katz for Mayor" began popping up on backpacks. In the end, Street squeaked out a razor-edge victory, but not before the political contest captivated the voters of Philadelphia -- and students at Penn.

Now, as Philadelphia, and the rest of the state, prepares for a major showdown for governor of Pennsylvania, Penn students have the same opportunity to show their political prowess. The race is already shaping up to be hotly contested, both in the party primaries and in the general election.

On the Republican side, state Attorney General Mike Fisher and state Treasurer Barbara Hafer are vying to keep the governor's office in GOP hands. For the Democrats, former Philadelphia Mayor Ed Rendell will face state Auditor General Bob Casey Jr. in the May primary.

While other candidates may still step forward, no one else has made an effort to succeed Gov. Mark Schweiker. Schweiker, a Republican who does not intend to run in 2002, took over for former governor Tom Ridge when President Bush appointed Ridge to head the federal Office of Homeland Security.

Rendell's presence in the gubernatorial race makes the contest especially intriguing for Philadelphia voters and Penn students. The former two-term Philadelphia mayor, once dubbed "America's Mayor," officially announced his candidacy with fanfare last week.

The Penn alumnus' announcement did not go unnoticed on campus. Students are already organizing to support Rendell's candidacy, and flyers previewing his announcement circulated for more than a week.

Given Rendell's popularity in Philadelphia and connections with Penn as both a graduate and an instructor, it's no surprise that support has already surged around Rendell. Similar support should now form around the other candidates for the state's top job -- not necessarily because those candidates may be more qualified than Rendell, but because a robust contest will create the kind of political enlightenment that occurred in the mayoral race.

Only when strong campaigns take shape do voters truly benefit from greater information, greater truth and ultimately, greater understanding of the issues and concerns facing the state.

As a partisan issue, moreover, Penn's Republican students should be concerned that the Rendell-for-governor wave may become too powerful on campus. They need not sit back and let that wave wash away their campaign efforts.

Indeed, Sam Katz had great success among Penn students because the Street campaign largely wrote off the University. One Street spokesman at one point even said that few votes -- either Republican or Democrat -- were to be secured from Penn students.

Yet, Penn for Katz disproved that notion, registering several hundred students and shepherding many of them to the polls. The mayoral election exemplified how Penn students can have an impact on politics when they mobilize.

A similar impact can and should be made this time around, as well.

Mark Fiore is a third-year Law School student and a 1999 College graduate from Spring Park, Minn.

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.