This year on the Auburn SGA's ballot, the Auburn students will have one option for president, vice president and treasurer.
The candidates are running unopposed and will probably step directly into office on March 1st.
While the circumstances are unique, in the past 10 years the three major candidates have not all run unopposed at the same time, so it is expected to that there would be no precedents set in place to curb the situation.
The lack of candidates shows an ongoing problem with student involvement in government.
We are not placing the blame on SGA.
It is the students of Auburn who need to become more invested in their government. Students need to step up and become more involved, whether it be through voting, running for elections or simply bringing attention to SGA elections.
Unfortunately, even if the candidates currently running unopposed are the best possible options and would win a normal election, their lack of opposition makes the election seem unfair.
There should always be at least two candidates running to give students a choice.
Again, this is not SGA's fault.
In a campus of 25,912 students, are there really not two people available to run for each position?
Perhaps students feel discouraged from running campaigns against candidates who have the backing of fraternities and connections with the SGA already, but there have been students who have won who are not involved in fraternities or SGA previously.
We should also encourage diversity in our SGA in order to represent the entirety of the student body.
Since the 1980s we have had only two African-American presidents and two female presidents.
More diverse candidates need to run to better represent the Auburn student body.
Auburn is not a population made up of entirely white males, and our SGA candidates should reflect this.
Currently, to win a seat in the SGA, one needs 40 percent of the vote, and there is no write in option.
Because each candidate is running unopposed, a single vote is 40 percent, which is not exactly landslide material.
While SGA does advertise about upcoming elections and turning in applications, SGA could advertise more about upcoming applications for SGA positions to encourage more people to apply.
A few more fliers, tweets and Facebook posts could reach more of the student body and could encourage more applications.
Students should retweet and share these posts as well to promote the spread of information.
Auburn students, aside from becoming more invested in running for SGA, should vote in our student government elections.
Voting is the basis of democracy and the foundation of this nation.
It cannot be stressed enough how important voting is.
Overall, change needs to happen.
Students need to have more motivation and a willingness to participate in their student government.
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