Is campaign week over yet?

Campaign posters posted along campus.
Photo submitted by Kaviena Spencer

You would think that students would care about the people who are representing their class and school, but as it turns out, most students dread campaign week.

The constant notifications from GroupMe about candidates, being stopped on your way to class, or getting hounded by people asking you who you’re voting for. All of this can turn a person off from participating in campaign week or even voting all together.

Cristina Gonzalez, a transfer student, says what turns her off from campaign week is the empty promises that some candidates are making.

“Some people running have been making public promises to partner up with certain organizations without contacting those organizations first, even to the point of not knowing that there are active groups on campus of said organization,” said Gonzalez.

Being stopped at Chick-Fil-A while trying to get a milkshake or having strangers banging on your door at 10 at night, will not make a student vote for you. If anything, it will make a student want to vote against you. It seems like during campaign week, students forget the meaning of personal space and respect.  

Campaign week is a week where you’re supposed to get to know the candidates. Hear their platform points about how they can make the school a better place. But instead of listening, we’re running in the other direction.

They’re taking up so much of our time even though we tell them that we’re late for class. So, we take the long way to class to avoid being attacked with information.  

“As useful as elections are people should be more considerate of others’ time. They could definitely try to implement their spin on an elevator pitch; thereby being persuasive while still being concise,” said Gonzalez.  

Another thing that students hate when it comes to campaign week is the fake attitudes candidates have when asking people to vote for them. ReNea Adams, a sophomore, wishes that candidates were more genuine when running.

“I dislike the fake attitudes that occur when people are running for something. If you’re going to run for something be genuine in the beginning, and prior to when you are campaigning,” Adam said.

Some will say that the only good thing about campaign week is the free food or items that candidates give away, but it makes you wonder if people are just using you for a good time. For example, Robyn Seniors, a sophomore business administration major, is running for SGA president. She, alongside her running mate Rebekah Hawkins, hosted a party after the candidates’ pageant where she offered free food like crabs.

Who’s to say that the people who attended the party attended because they truly believe in Seniors – and not for the food?

It feels like every year fewer and fewer students aren’t voting in the elections, but the question is why? Jasharia Davis, a sophomore social work major, believes it’s become too much for students.

“It’s a lot going on. People always want to stop you and talk. Nobody really pays much attention to anything else because of campaign week. Social media gets flooded with campaign stuff. It becomes overwhelming,” said Davis.   

When it comes to voting for our next representatives in this election or future ones, it’s important for students to vote based on reason and not emotion.

Having loyalty and being loyal is great when it comes to friends, but there’s also a sense of loyalty that you have to your school. If you feel like your friend, line brother or sister, classmates, boyfriend or girlfriend is not the best fit to represent FAMU, don’t vote for them. Vote in someone who you truly believe is the best fit.

Meanwhile, thank goodness campaign week is coming to a close.