ASUA's general election began this morning, and until tomorrow evening, students will have a chance to decide who will lead their student government next year.

Voting students will choose the 2003-2004 student body president, administrative vice president, executive vice president and senators.

In the primary elections on March 3 and 4, presidential candidates J.P. Benedict and Jered Mansell beat out Travis Pritchett with 77.67 percent of the vote between the two. Administrative vice presidential candidates Victoria Ruan and Daniel Suh captured a collective 74.35 percent of the vote, preventing Talianna Kattan from advancing to the general election.

Scott Chenery and Melanie Rainer are vying for the executive vice presidential position. They earned 53.67 and 46.33 percent of the vote in the primary, respectively.

There are also 19 senator hopefuls trying to win one of the 10 seats by tomorrow night.

Not only will voters in this election determine next year's student leaders, but they will also have a chance to decide the fate of the KAMP student radio by voting on its $1 fee referendum.

KAMP directors said that the station may not survive if the referendum is not approved.

J.P. Benedict
marketing junior

Campaign promises:

· Creating more spirit, pride and tradition within ASUA and on campus by:

· Reinstating the UA Collaboration Board through formal meetings

· Creating an online Student Renter's Guide

· Lobby state legislature to keep UA tuition dollars on campus

Jered Mansell
political science and economics senior

Campaign promises:

· Re-establish the UA Collaboration Board through informal meetings.

· Print a weekly article in the Daily Wildcat to keep students informed about what's happening in ASUA.

· Bring forward the concerns of the graduate and professional students.

· Help Greek Life re-affirm its role as a positive entity on campus.

· Make ASUA the representative body that it was designed to be.

Scott Cheney
biochemistry junior

Campaign promises:

· Establish a UA LateNight program to give students a safe alternative to partying on the weekends.

· Motivate and unite senators to foster and encourage their objectives to completion.

· Help clubs find ways to raise funds. Campaign promises:

· Establish a UA LateNight program to give students a safe alternative to partying on the weekends.

· Motivate and unite senators to foster and encourage their objectives to completion.

· Help clubs find ways to raise funds.

Melanie Rainer
business economics senior

Campaign promises:

· Expand Club Olympics and President's Forum.

· Find means of corporate sponsorship for UA clubs.

· Reestablish the UA Collaboration Board through formal meetings.

· Create "My UA," a student planning device that would help students organize their year.

Victoria ruan
political science sophomore

Campaign promises:

· Provide the SafeRide program with more vehicles to increase campus safety.

· Increase freshmen retention rates through the improvement of programs such as Bear Down Camp and the Freshmen Class Council.

· Develop the Minority Action Council to create more unity among campus organizations.

· Implement a Safety Advisory Committee to unite various departments on campus to address concerns regarding safety.

Daniel Suh
finance and biochemistry sophomore

Campaign promises:

· Combine the budgets of programs and services on collaborative events to save costs and increase student involvement.

· Organize initiatives and protocols in programs and services to improve efficiency and productivity.

Preet Ghuman
biochemistry/molecular and cellular biology freshman

Preet Ghuman believes that the senate needs to take a more active role in interacting with the campus community, something he feels has been lacking in the past. Ghuman hopes that through increased outreach, ASUA will be more in tune with campus needs.

Ghuman hopes to raise ASUA awareness by initiating programs and services that allow students and senators to interact and discuss their various campus concerns. By increasing accessibility, Ghuman hopes that students will become more involved in the decisions that would affect them.

Ghuman also wants to expand the safety programs set in place by current senator Travis Pritchett as well as allow for more on-campus concerts and movies.

Vern Johnson
agricultural education and animal science sophomore

Vern Johnson believes his ability to work with others and compromise makes him an excellent candidate for senator.

Johnson has worked in the past helping to plan the Future Farmers of America career development events, experience he believes taught him to work with others. Johnson also realizes that it is important to volunteer time to activities where students benefit.

He said he also hopes to increase campus philanthropies. Johnson believes that when students give back to their university, the campus community will be united and strengthened.

Kartikeya Kejriwal
information systems senior

When Kartikeya Kejriwal (K.K.) transferred to UA from a small college in Australia, he believed he was coming to one of the finest universities in the world. But he said that there is always room for improvement.

As part of his senatorial platform, Kejriwal would like to make the CatCard more accessible to restaurants near UA, especially those on University Boulevard.

He also hopes to stop a repeat of the men's basketball ticket fiasco, as Kejriwal would establish a website to enable ticket purchasing.

Lastly, Kejriwal wants to ensure that UA students will not have to see another tuition hike, by implementing a more frugal spending pattern within the university.

Drew McInerney
business finance sophomore

Drew McInerney thinks of himself as just a "regular college student." Through his involvement in various on-campus programs such as intramural sports and Spires Sophomore Honorary, McInerney believes he has learned the skills necessary to be a student senator.

In the past two years, McInerney has participated in several philanthropy programs, including Habitat for Humanity. This experience has taught McInerney to work with dedication, another value that McInerny believes is necessary in order to be senator.

McInerney also believes that it is important to balance work during the week with fun on the weekends, something he says many UA students can identify with.

Ben Weiss
business management sophomore

Ben Weiss' main goal, if elected senator, is to increase the efficiency of communication in the campus community. Weiss, a current senator aide, says there is far too little contact between students and professors at UA and plans to fix the problem by creating online chat rooms for students and professors.

In these chat rooms, students would have the opportunity to interact directly with their professors, Weiss said.

Also, Weiss hopes to keep club funding at the same level it is now, as he believes that clubs shouldn't have to pay for budget cuts.

Robert Woodson
history junior

According to Robert Woodson, student's opinions are not heard at the higher levels of organizations at UA. If elected, Woodson would like to change this.

Woodson believes that more corporate sponsorship of sporting events will translate into UA dollars toward keeping colleges open. Woodson's plan consists of corporations donating money to the financially independent athletics department. In turn, the alumni who donate to athletics would be given the opportunity to donate their money to the university, though they would not have to do so.

Woodson would also like to institute a +/ö grading scale, a system that Woodson says has met with great success at other universities around the country.

James Hoult
pre-business sophomore

James Hoult said he has no unique ideas to bring to office, but instead he hopes to ensure that old promises are carried out.

Campus safety is a common concern among senatorial candidates, he said, but believes that current ASUA Senator Travis Pritchett's plan to increase lighting on campus is the best way to go.

Hoult plans to continue to fight for a fall break and an increased number of SafeRide drivers.

He promised to also fight for upperclassmen to be allowed to live in the residence halls past the current four-semester cap.

Sarah Birnbaum
political science, communication and journalism freshman

Sarah Birnbaum has a lot of energy, much of which she plans to focus on developing a CatCard acceptance system in businesses on East University Boulevard.

Birnbaum said she has already done research to help make her promise become a reality and hopes to implement an online survey for student feedback regarding her plan.

However, she said her main goal is to create a fun and positive environment on campus to promote school spirit and unity.

As with many senatorial candidates, Birnbaum said she will work toward the implementation of a fall break.

Blake Buchanan
journalism freshman

Blake Buchanan said he already knows more about ASUA than his competition. As a member of the Freshman Class Council, Buchanan has already served office hours within ASUA and worked with current senators on their projects.

Buchanan said he hopes to improve the distribution of basketball tickets by creating an all-day event for fans wanting tickets.

In addition, he said he plans to improve the relationship between the Residence Hall Association and ASUA.

Lastly, Buchanan hopes to increase student awareness of campus media such as UATV and KAMP by improving their programming.

Kara Harris
history sophomore

Kara Harris served as ASUA administrative assistant this year, an opportunity, she said which led her to run for the office of senator. If elected, Harris said she hopes to increase awareness of campus clubs and organizations while improving programs such as the President's Forum and Club Olympics to create a sense of unity between clubs and students.

Furthermore, Harris said she would initiate tuition forums to provide students with a better understanding of the tuition increase, and serve as a link between students and the Arizona Board of Regents.

Jacob Reuben
pre-business freshman

Jacob Reuben is all about business. He said he knows what he wants and knows that it will take a large amount of effort to get that accomplished ÷ effort he's willing to put forth.

Reuben said that if elected senator he promises to work to increase the number of vendors that accept the CatCard, expanding students' options and increasing university profits.

He also plans to meet with officials from the city of Tucson to improve the intersection at North Park Avenue and East Speedway Boulevard and improve the overall transportation on campus.

Finally, the Freshman Class Council member said he will increase spirit and awareness of club availability in the UA community.

Matt Harris
pre-business freshman

Matt Harris said that he hopes the SafeRide program is extended to all days of the week, as well as expanded to assist those who are at local bars. He feels this would help lower the number of DUI cases near campus.

Harris said he would be an advocate of the greek community and its continued existence, especially after seeing the large number or problems many houses have faced this year.

Harris said he is also concerned with making ASUA better known to the students, showing students how it can serve the UA community.

William Haun
psychology sophomore

William Haun said the emphasis of his campaign is to make the campus a safer place.

He wants the men's basketball ticket procedure at McKale Center to go more smoothly, with tickets being distributed in an orderly fashion instead of a situation like last fall's mob of students.

Haun said that he continuously hears from students that they are afraid to walk through campus late at night because of the poor lighting and would like to see that improved.

Haun said he is capable of implementing significant changes throughout the entire campus, while doing it in a fiscally feasible manner.

Nicholas Bajema
pre-business junior

Bajema said he wants to improve and organize the basketball ticket distribution process.

The Seattle native said he also wants to examine the U-Mart's profit margin to see whether prices could be lowered.

Finally, he said, if elected, he would try to improve the UA Mall's appearance.

Patrick Brennan
pre-business junior

Brennan said that, if elected, he would try to form student advisory committees, particularly to focus on enrollment and athletics services, to increase student involvement at the UA.

He said he would also try to create a joint coalition between UA, Arizona State University and Northern Arizona University to fight further budget cuts on a statewide level. He said he also aims to streamline administrative services and improve UA's relationship with the community.

Soral Karim
molecular and cellular biology senior

Karim said he believes the sense of community at UA has weakened since he developed an interest in the school over four years ago.

"A place that once was full of friendships, opportunities, and new experiences is now becoming a place full of fading opportunities and budget-cut clubs," his profile on the ASUA Web site stated.

If elected, Karim said he would try to put on more campus events, including multicultural fairs, and have parties on the Mall on Friday nights.

Karim is also interested in creating a one-stop Web site featuring off-campus housing.

Morgan Kisler
communication sophomore

Kisler, if elected, said she would make a difference by improving the student recreation center to make it more ergonomic.

She said she would also like to disseminate more information about clubs and programs across campus so students could become more involved.

Finally, Kisler said she would try to improve student awareness of health and safety issues.

Nathan Pluke
junior majoring in English

Pluke said, if elected, he would work to establish a community service capital fund, as well as promote communication between clubs, organizations, the greek community and Tucson groups "to maximize the impact of the students."

Pluke also said that he wants to help correct retention problems by promoting student involvement in activities outside of class.

Pluke is secretary of Beta Theta Pi, and he co-founded and serves as president of Cats for Kids, a club that devoted to youth-centered philanthropies.

Kristian Ramos
journalism sophomore

Ramos said that he plans to improve things at UA by "going back to basics."

In his ASUA profile, he stated that he plans to do this by emphasizing the significance of diversity in ASUA organizations.

Ramos said he would like to implement a revamped pulse survey to test the campus' spirit. Finally, Ramos said he wants to work on UA LateNight, an on-campus alternative to alcohol-related nighttime activities. Ramos said he would like to enlist the greek community to help organize the festivities.