Though the Undergraduate Student Government (USG) elections have lost a team campaigning for president and vice president positions, the presence of leadership was strongly felt at last night's first executive debate, breathing life into the seemingly deflated USG elections.

Presidential candidates Nick Stathes and Kevin Ward and their running mates, Pat Daley and Daniel Ward,
presented themselves before an audience of their peers in the Life Sciences Building to discuss and defend their platforms while garnering student support.

Although most of the students at the debate wore yellow "Nick and Pat" T-shirts, the audience was respectful, and the mood of the debate was relaxed.

Each team was given the opportunity to ask its opposing team four questions regarding its platform proposals, with time for the initial team to ask a follow-up question and the defending team permitted to answer.

Questions were brought up involving the restructuring of USG, the necessity of student involvement and how much responsibility the executive branch should be allocated.

Both teams are campaigning on similar platforms, making questions difficult for candidates to answer directly at times.

The Ward brothers stressed the importance of student participation, citing arguments within the USG as a major problem prohibiting students from communicating effectively with the USG.

"Student leaders need to put their personal agendas aside," Kevin Ward said.

They also stressed the importance of USG involvement with Academic Assembly. Kevin Ward, a member of the assembly, said the executive branch tried only twice this semester to communicate with the assembly.

To solve this problem, the Wards want to establish an internal review committee to observe and correct the issues within USG.

Similarly, Stathes and Daley look toward implementing a constitutional convention that will review the problems within USG and correct any constitutional issues.

"The way USG is operating now is ineffective," Stathes said. "It is imperative to have USG run as effectively as possible."

While this might sound similar to executive platforms of the past, Stathes said that he and Daley will take smaller roles in rewriting the constitution, appointing USG members to make the appropriate observations and revisions instead.

Although Stathes and Daley would like to actively work toward reducing the price of tuition for students, the Wards took a more passive position, believing that the relevance of certain issues will depend on student feedback.

Daniel Ward said that he and his brother would look for the students to raise concern regarding the tuition.

In addition to reducing tuition prices, Stathes and Daley focused their attention on revamping the USG Web site, providing students with access to anything they need from community service projects to counseling services for those with substance abuse problems or depression.

"If there is a legal market for them, we should be providing it," Stathes said.

The Wards opposed this notion, saying that they are more interested in what students have to say rather than what they can initially provide.

"You are trying to instill your platform values on students, telling them what you want without taking in their opinion," Daniel Ward said.

In spite of disagreement between the candidates on how to influence the student body, both campaigns made it clear that their responsibilities are first and foremost to the students.

"The first step in fixing things is to complete and satisfy roles that we are supposed to be doing," Kevin Ward said. "We are not here to put forth our own ideas and implement them on the student body."

At the conclusion of the debate, head elections commissioner David Gelpi brought forth the idea of reopening Senate elections, polling the audience for their input.

In order to reopen these elections, Gelpi and his commission will need to bring the issue before the Senate at tonight's meeting in order to gain approval and redistribute packets.