Ryan ChartrandIf you have been a Cal Poly student for more than a year, you are probably familiar with the annual Associated Students Inc. election. It is that time right after Open House when campus is plastered with staked signs, posters and slogans of people who have a desire to become involved in the management of ASI and to somehow make the lives of students a bit better.
In past years, the ASI elections have been a two-day process of students expressing their preference in student representation with the standard Scantron ballot.
This year, ASI has the opportunity to make a substantial change to a campus standard. Over the past several months, the ASI Board of Directors has researched options that will greatly reduce the paper use, overall cost and time to vote in the next election. However, in order to move ahead with such an immense change, the board needs your input.
Throughout today and tomorrow, ASI is hosting a poll to test how well this system works and its ease of use.
To gather some information that is actually interesting, the poll will ask students to rank possible U.S. presidential candidates for the 2008 election in order of preference from one to three. The new, fully electronic poll will allow instant results and students can vote using only their Cal Poly Portal user name and password – no need for the PolyCard. If this test is successful, ASI will use a similar polling system in all future elections.
The most important part of this discussion is how much we need your help. All you need to do is go to either the Robert E. Kennedy Library or the University Union Plaza between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. today or tomorrow. Voting in the test poll takes place through the Cal Poly Portal. The “Rock the E-Vote” link, under the Cal Poly announcements on the main page, takes you to the test poll.
The results of the poll will be used for two purposes. First, ASI will use them to gauge whether this system fits Cal Poly and works properly. The second is to provide unofficial political feedback for the Mustang Daily, which can prove useful in future articles about the 2008 presidential election.
The most important question on this poll is, “Should ASI use an electronic polling system in the upcoming ASI election?” We are already convinced that this system has merit through its many benefits like reduced paper use, reduced cost and reduced time to vote. However, we can’t make such a large change without student input. Please help us gauge whether or not we should make this change to campus elections and give us your input today and tomorrow.
Jared Samarin is an MBA graduate student and ASI Chair of the Board.