Campaigns may cost more than $2,000

In addition to investing blood, sweat, tears and giving up valuable class time in their campaigns, Michigan Student Assembly and LSA Student Government candidates have spent a significant amount of money during this semester's elections.

Of the three parties with slates vying for MSA executive positions, the Blue Party spent the most on its campaign, with a bill of more than $2,000. Photocopies and a full page newspaper advertisement comprised most of the party's expenses, said Blue Party presidential candidate Bram Elias.

About $400 of the party's funds were raised through party member dues of $20 apiece, Elias said, and the rest was "out of pocket and out of parent."

In both the Students' Party and the Blue Party dues are normally put toward purchasing party propaganda such as party banners and quarter sheets that list the names of the party candidates for on both MSA and LSA-SG ballots.

A significant portion of the total amount that parties spend is provided by investments from individual candidates, in addition to party dues.

Members of the Students' Party have poured about $1,000 into this term's campaign, including funds raised from $25 party dues paid by the members.

Students' Party presidential candidate Sarah Chopp, the current MSA vice president, said funds were primarily used for fliers and banners.

"We made a deliberate effort to meet more people and spend more time talking about the issues," said Student's Party spokesperson Brian Reich.

The Student's Party held issue forums earlier this week, which Reich said are more cost effective than fliering.

Students' Party candidate and current LSA Rep. Jeff Omtevedt, who said he spent about $200 on his campaign this term, said the forums showed students that "we're people not posters."

Included in Omtvedt's investment was a game about candidates' names called Students' Party Wordsearch. Copies of the game were placed strategically in lecture halls across campus earlier this week.

Both the Blue and Students' parties also sought sponsorship from local stores such as Dominos Pizza and Blue Cab Co., who advertised premiums on the parties' quarter-sheet fliers, but did not actually contribute to campaign funding for either group.

But not all candidates are breaking the bank in an attempt to gain control of the assembly.

"We are spending very little," Defend Affirmative Action Party presidential candidate Jessica Curtin said.

DAAP Campaign Manager Caroline Wong said the party spent about $300 during this term's election.

"Our winning has been linked to the growing student movement," Wong said.

DAAP member Cedrick Bunch, who is running for a seat on the assembly, said he personally invested about $70 into his campaign for the routine of fliers and posters.

But other DAAP candidates said they did not put up individual fliers prior to the election. DAAP member and MSA candidate Amer Ardati said he relied on the party's posters that listed its candidates and platform.

Investments made by independent candidates often do not approach the amount of money spent by candidates who are affiliated with one of the three major campus parties.

Independent candidate Jim Secreto said he invested $60 in posters and fliers for his campaign.

Near the bottom of the scale, independent candidate David Taub spent a mere $21. His strategy consists of fliers in Angell Hall and the Modern Languages Building. Taub describes his fliers as, "not exactly high tech," and compared his fliers to those candidates who use photos on their advertisements.

"A lot of these fliers from the parties are pretentious," Taub said.

03-25-99