14 freshman apply for TCU Senate elections

Fourteen candidates will compete for 12 sophomore seats on next year's Tufts Community Union Senate, making the upcoming elections the first contested race for the class in years.

All of the other races -- for junior and senior senate positions, seats on the TCU Judiciary, and the Committee for Student Life (CSL) -- will be uncontested this semester.

The number of freshman running is high compared to most senate elections. Normally, only seven senators may represent each class, but because there are only four rising juniors and five rising seniors running for seats, there are more positions open for rising sophomores.

This year, there are ten sophomores sitting in the TCU Senate.

Candidates planning on running in this month's elections were required to announce their candidacy at a general interest meeting Wednesday night. Three candidates will run for the TCUJ and there are four CSL candidates, according to unconfirmed ELBO figures.

Before ELBO can announce the official number of candidates, the candidates' petitions must be validated and their academic standing must be confirmed.

According to ELBO Public Relations Director Aravinda Rao, the contest for the sophomore seats indicates growing interest in the Senate. "We have done our job in promoting the Senate, and it represents a more cohesive class," she said.

Freshman TCU Senator Rafi Goldberg also attributed apparent rise in interest to the success of ELBO's advertising campaign.

Rao expects campaigning for the contested seats to be fierce. "[It will] be very difficult, as two qualified candidates will be knocked out," she said.

Of the nine incumbent freshmen, eight will be running for reelection next year, along with six new candidates. Freshman Senator Joe Weiner will not be running for reelection this year because of his workload, but he said that he hopes to run for a position at some point in the future.

Though the contested election may surprise many older senators and students, some freshmen seem unfazed. "The first election was contested and it just feels normal to have a competitive election," freshman Senator Dave Baumwoll said. He added that he was not concerned about the opposition.

Senator Jeff Katzin is nervous about keeping his seat, but excited at the prospect of an unpredictable outcome.

"This is a great opportunity for the reputation of the body," he said. The contested election will also make the Senate stronger, he said, and "legitimize the actions of the body because of the democratic principles that will be upheld by having an election and giving the student body a choice."

Senators are not particularly worried about their campaigning; incumbent Senator Jos?© Vasquez plans to visit constituents door to door to maintain his seat.

Although upper-class seats are traditionally uncontested because of the number of students studying abroad, TCU Senator John Valentine said he has a "strange feeling the class of 2006 will always be a highly-contested race." The competition speaks volumes about the class, Valentine said.

The candidates will debate this Monday at Hotung Caf?© and face questions from ELBO and students. Elections will be held online next Wednesday.