Why Your Vote Matters?
Written on July 3rd , 2022 by {"login"=>"jcbphc21", "email"=>"f20181005@hyderabad.bits-pilani.ac.in", "display_name"=>"Journal Club, BPHC", "first_name"=>"Journal Club", "last_name"=>"BPHC"}So elections are underway. You've probably already seen the campaign videos, been exposed to a million "Vote For X" WhatsApp forwards and been coralled into GMeets where you're told how you should exercise your vote.
You probably already know how you're going to vote or you're probably debating between candidates or you're planning to Random Number Generator your way through the entire election process - either way, you've probably asked yourself why you should care in the first place.
In a very BuzzFeed listicle style view - here are 3 reasons why you absolutely must attend the soapbox and then absolutely must vote
- Elections are one time where you get to talk to people, tell them about your grievances and get them to take action. The Students Union has an enormous amount of funds at it's disposal (funds which are meant to be used for clubs and general campus improvements) and elections are your time to tell the SU how to use it. If you want funds to go towards something other than a fest - it's your job to convince those in power of that.
- Beyond the manifesto, the candidate you vote in is going to be the one in contact with the administration. They're going to be the only ones who can effect actual ground level changes to your life as a student. Changes like the PS1 fee reduction, the staged return of students to campus and the PCT-based-grading of the pandemic times were all direct results of an involved Students Union (from all 3 campuses) directly talking to the administration and bringing out concerns. And so, even if you don't particularly care about the manifestos, think about what changes you want to see tbe administration make and who you want spearheading the student movement on that end.
- There's a NOTA option on the ballot. If you're absolutely sure that no candidate is going to bring any positive change whatsoever - you're very free to vote NOTA and signal your displeasure.
The most important reason you should vote though - is because there's absolutely no reason not to.
It's your only chance to bring accountability to a system that actively shirks it and to bring up important questions to the candidates and the General Body.
And so, in what is a rising senior's last attempt to increase political awareness on campus - do go out and talk to the candidates, watch the Soapbox, ask difficult questions and then vote for whoever you want (or don't want) to lead you.