Four sets of candidates will begin to campaign for the third University Park Undergraduate Association (UPUA) elections today.
The list of 41 candidates running for various positions in UPUA was released on March 7. Elections will be held March 26 after a 10-day campaigning period. The Association of Residence Hall Students and the University Park Allocation Committee will also hold elections that day.
Head Elections Commissioner Jon Lozano (senior-political science) said he "doesn't know what to expect" for this year's campaigning period, which ends at 10 p.m. March 25.
"I really hope they get creative because the more students that know there's an election going on, the better," he said.
Although past presidential candidates for the now-defunct Undergraduate Student Government often went to extravagant measures to attract voters -- Mahmoud Ablan's 2005 campaign featured a balloon-covered charter bus -- this year's elections code limits campaign spending to $600 for presidential candidates.
Presidential candidate Gavin Keirans (sophomore-business administration), the only candidate who has run for UPUA president before, said he has spent about $300 so far on campaign items, including T-shirts and signs.
Though Keirans finished second in last year's presidential race, he was later disqualified because of spending violations.
Keirans, who is the executive director of student advocacy group Safeguard Old State, said he finds grassroots campaigning and speaking directly with voters most effective.
"That's the way people remember you the most," he said. "People who use buses and extravagant things, most of the time they end up disqualified."
UPUA presidential candidate and Penn State Blue Band saxophonist Pete Sowa (sophomore-finance and economics) stressed the value of communication in campaigning. Matt Sabo (sophomore-economics), the Blue Band's drum major, is Sowa's running mate.
"We've talked to over 200 people, asking their opinions," he said. "Once our platform is released, we're going to be out there shaking hands."
While Sowa said the Blue Band is not officially endorsing he and Sabo, he said their involvement in the band and in other on-campus groups is an asset. Both the Nittany Lion and Blue Sapphire PJ Maierhofer (junior-advertising and public relations), the feature twirler for the Blue Band's majorette ensemble, appear in a promotional video for their campaign, Sowa said.
Sowa said he doesn't expect to go over the spending limit.
"This is student politics. Money shouldn't be talking," he said. "If you cheat in a student election and spend more than you're allotted to, then you got a problem."
UPUA presidential candidate Dan Kennedy (junior-history) said his involvement in Penn State's ROTC program could benefit his campaign although he doesn't expect a formal endorsement from any of the ROTC branches. Kennedy, a cadet staff sergeant for Army ROTC, said he plans to get in touch with student organizations to spread awareness.
"I think a big part of the battle is associating the event with a name," he said.
Jordan Cascino (junior-communication arts and sciences) is the fourth candidate running for president. Cascino said that while reaching out to students is important, the real purpose of the election is to increase awareness of student government as a whole.
"In the long run, the underlying principle of all our campaigns is to change Penn State for the better," said Cascino, founder of the Paternoville Coordination Committee.
The campaigning period for all positions, including the at-large representatives, academic unit representatives and on- and off-campus representatives also begins today. The spending limit for at-large representatives is $300; the spending limit for all other offices is $200.
