By Vinny Sottile
Upon nearing the main entrance to the Student Union at the University of Central Florida, it is nearly impossible to miss the giant campaign tents flanking the cobblestone walkway.
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To the left you have Weston and Sydney, whose campaign promises include the pedestrian bridge over Alafaya Blvd. and a mobile app to enhance the blue light system. To the right, there is Jessica Luck who cover a variety of issues including the extension of library hours and the creation of a SGA Ambassadors Program.
There is a bill floating around in the SGA about banning the distribution of food as a way to secure more votes during the SGA Presidential Election, however it was not passed in time to have effect this year.
The senate passed the bill but President Melissa Westbrook did not sign it in time, so pizza and other treats still are offered, at least until next year.
“The food ban is not in effect, so we did get some food,” began presidential candidate Weston Bayes. “I think that brought some people out to educate them about both sides, and I think that’s beneficial to getting people out here.”
Although Bayes had a positive outlook on the food ban not being a part of the election this year, his opposition was not as happy as he was about it.
“Food has always swayed elections,” said Jessica Gottsleben, a SGA presidential candidate. “Students don’t realize that you cannot be denied food. You can vote or not vote, or you can vote for either side and you can still receive food. It would constitute a bribe if you had to vote a specific way in order to receive food.”
The two different teams have taken very different approaches to how they are going about securing votes. Weston and Sydney tables were found frequently around campus, and there were always people ready to talk to students about their platforms, a warm box of pizza on the table next to the voting computers.
“We have done a lot leading up to this,” said Bayes. “We used social media, promoted with signs around campus, to get people aware of the elections.”
Other than the social media and signage around campus, Weston and Sydney have utilized pizza and Wackadoo’s trucks to help promote their campaign.
“Of course food is going to sway voters,” said vice presidential hopeful Sydney Altfield. “Hopefully, when it’s banned, people will start becoming more knowledgeable.”
Jessica Luck has taken a different approach to getting votes than their competitors. They simply are utilizing the student body to talk with them and get them to understand their platforms and visit their website for more information. They don’t have Wackadoos trucks or the extensive resources that their opponents have, but they are remaining hopeful that the student body will listen to the message rather than the benefits of the food that is in front of them.
“We do not have the resources that the internal system in SGA usually has. We are just trying to reach out to as many students as possible and have them resonate with the platform,” said Gottsleben. “We just want the students to feel like what we say matters because we care about them and we want their voice to matter.”
Vice presidential hopeful Lucdwin Luck added to the lengths that his team has gone in order to secure the votes of the UCF students.
“We have been creative and made a campaign video,” said Luck. “And even though it has been done in the past I know that the other side has not created one so it is unique to us this time around.”
SGA Presidential voting can be accessed through your myUCF page until Wednesday at 5 p.m.
