Freshmen join student gov't race

Freshman elections are underway -- as of 6 a.m. this morning, 72 freshmen officially became candidates for the Undergraduate Assembly and Freshman Class Board.

Last night, the Nominations and Elections Committee -- the branch of student government that oversees UA and Class Boards elections -- held an information session to educate the freshman candidates about the upcoming weeks.

In addition to the actual elections, which will be held from Sept. 30 to Oct. 7, candidates have the next two weeks to run their campaigns and encourage fellow students to vote.

"We want to ensure a very fair and egalitarian elections proceeding," NEC Vice Chairwoman for Elections and College senior Rochelle Behrens said.

"We're also hoping to obtain a higher voter turnout than in the past," she added, noting that she aims to exceed last year's 40 percent turnout.

NEC Chairwoman and College senior Melissa La Vigne agreed with Behrens and commented on the enthusiasm of the Class of 2007.

"We have an excellent candidate turnout this year, which really shows the initiative and focus of this freshman class," she said.

And focused they were.

UA and Class Board candidate and College freshman Jonathan Cho showed much interest in running for student government.

"After working on student government in high school, I want to help shape the school," he said.

If he is elected to the UA, Cho hopes to help in the expansion of PennQuest and PENNacle, the pre-orientation programs offered each year to Penn's incoming freshmen.

"Having participated in PENNacle, I felt that it was such a great experience and hope that more students can go through such programs," he said.

Nursing and Wharton freshman Katie Prada, who is running for the position of Nursing representative on the Freshman Class Board, showed similar excitement when discussing her campaign.

"Being in the two schools at Penn, I have really seen some differences," she said. "I feel that there's a real community in the Nursing School and want the chance to make a difference and represent [Nursing freshmen] campus-wide."

These candidates have the next two weeks to spend up to $50 on their campaigns and gain as many votes as possible.

With 40 freshmen running for only eight seats on the UA, and 14 running for class president, this year's election may prove to be the most competitive yet.

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