As the winter term commences, another round of Feds elections are upon us.
While for many of you, this doesn’t affect your life at all, for <em>Imprint’s</em> news editor (me), Feds elections are probably the busiest time of the year.
On top of going through all the platforms, covering debates, keeping an eye on election regulations, and hosting a candidate debate of our own, election time brings an onslaught of criticism toward <em>Imprint</em>.
While my colleagues and I are very much used to the (often brutal) criticisms of the UW community, I’d like to take some time to explain to you what my job is during election time.
As a news source, it is our job to discover and present the facts. My goal for this election is not to persuade you, but to educate you.
It is the responsibility of myself, and the team of dedicated students that form <em>Imprint’s</em> election committee, to keep the public informed on all things to do with this election.
We will go through every platform in extensive detail. We will spend countless hours developing the perfect debate questions. We will explain how and where to vote, because that is our job. What we won’t do is tell you which way to vote.
Every year this committee is faced with a series of dilemmas. Do we spend all our time on the presidential candidates, or all of the exec? Do we talk about the senate races? Do we remark on the absurd number of acclaimed seats on council? How can we challenge incumbents on broken promises from the last election without being unfair?
We will never make everyone happy. Regardless of what we do, someone will accuse us of being too harsh, and others will call us soft. But at the end of the day, my goal is not to be popular.
My goal, and my job, is to ensure that, come election day, you make a decision (even if it’s a decision not to vote) based on knowledge.
<strong>Verity Martin</strong>
<em>Imprint</em> news editor
