[ Golden Gater Online - February 20, 1997 ]
Levi Sumagaysay
Staff writer
With student elections only a month away, the chairperson of the Associated Students Elections Committee resigned last Wednesday.
Eric Hammer, who held the office for 10 months and is responsible for the new touch tone election system being implemented at SF State for the first time this semester, said he was "tired of working with apathetic people." He also said he was unhappy with the new election codes passed by the AS Legislature last Thursday.
However, Hammer said he will stay on the committee until the end of his term to make sure the new election process runs smoothly. His term ends on May 1.
Calls for comment to AS Speaker of the Legislature Sarah Low were not returned.
Along with touch tone elections, Hammer was working on changes to the existing election codes. The new codes passed by the legislature in an emergency meeting last Thursday do not include the changes Hammer had proposed. AS President Lee Sprague said he and Hammer put a lot of work into the proposed changes in an attempt to improve the election system.
Although Hammer said he "will not stand by the codes that were passed" after Thursday's meeting, he said what frustrated him most was the fact that he had given the legislature copies of the election codes three months prior to the meeting, and only three members raised their hands when asked whether they had read them.
Because of lack of time, the codes that were passed at the meeting were not reviewed by legal counsel. Hammer criticized the legislature for its lack of responsibility and commitment, but emphasized he was not speaking about all of its members.
The most significant changes to the election codes Hammer had proposed included the elimination of slates for legislative candidates, which would require candidates to run for office individually. According to Sprague, he and Hammer believed students running for office on slates do not always turn out to be the best candidates. Some candidates tend to "ride on the coattails of other students," Sprague said.
Another proposed change the legislature rejected was the creation of election pamphlets to inform voters about the candidates' objectives and stances on certain issues. The legislature decided that should be left up to the candidates themselves.
"It's a shame," Hammer said. "The only way to get more people out (to vote) is to provide more information. We have the manpower to do that."
Sprague said he's sorry to see Hammer go. "He's done a really good job. But I'm glad he's going to follow through with the touch tone elections. That is a big change that will get more people involved."
Hammer's successor was expected to be named at Wednesday's AS Legislature meeting.
[ Golden Gater - February 20, 1997 ]