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Jumping the gun

Early race will augment MSA's partisan politics last week, the Students' Party announced its ticket for the Michigan Student Assembly presidential election, which is more than two months away. Thus, presidential candidate Jonathan Freeman and vice presidential candidate Olga Savic began their campaign at an earlier date than any MSA ticket in recent memory. The decision to announce in January is of questionable judgment. Every member of MSA should work to ensure that the campaign does not undercut the assembly's effectiveness during the next two months.

When he announced his candidacy, Freeman cited improvement of MSA's internal workings as a top issue. However, a two-month campaign likely will hinder MSA from work, rather than increasing effectiveness. Freeman's and Savic's campaign will occupy a quarter of the current MSA term. It has the potential to paralyze MSA with political posturing.

The Students' Party must strive to avoid this unsavory scenario. If the party is serious about improving the operation of the body, then they must demonstrate their willingness to do whatever they can to create a more open, cooperative MSA. Most importantly, they cannot allow the assembly to become a tool of their campaign ambitions, a common problem that has riddled MSA in the past.

Other MSA members also must make strides in this regard. First, the other parties should resist the temptation to join in the campaign at this early date. They also must ensure that the assembly does not become a mechanism by which to attack the Students' Party ticket. The Michigan Party, the Wolverine Party and others should give Freeman and Savic every opportunity to demonstrate that they will not allow the campaign to overshadow their MSA work -- or to show that they are incapable of separating themselves from petty partisan bickering.

Members are sending mixed signals about whether MSA can function properly over the next few weeks. The other major parties -- Michigan and Wolverine -- have stated they have no intention to announce their candidates in the near future. However, Dan Serota and Probir Mehta initiated a trend this week: Switching parties barely two months before the election. The turn indicates an increased politicization of the assembly.

The Students' Party displayed poor judgment by selecting its nominees for the spring MSA presidential election long before the other parties. The party must ensure that MSA is not paralyzed by premature election season politicking. Also, the other members and parties of the assembly should make an effort to preserve the body's effectiveness.

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