EDITORIAL: Insignificant problems overshadow real SGA issues

Herald Staff

The issue: Although Glasgow sophomore Jay Todd Richey won the Student Government Association presidency by 26 percentage points, recent election appeals have called his victory into question. One anonymous source came forward and claimed that Richey violated Election Code 3.4.6, “There shall be no campaign material distributed into or onto doors or doorways on campus.” A more recent accusation alleges that Richey also violated code 3.4.13, “All candidates shall remove all campaign material from university property no later than five (5) days after election.” SGA’s Judicial Council will hear both sides on April 16. 

Our stance: SGA isn’t really thinking about disqualifying Richey over poor poster placement, right? 

This past week has been an embarrassment to SGA.

To anyone who has ever questioned the government body’s validity or effectiveness, this whole situation is now a crown jewel in the running joke of the organization.

‘Postergate’ has evolved into such a farce that it even overshadows the abysmal numbers that the SGA election report revealed, and probably what the organization really needs to work on. There’s nothing impressive about a total of 1,520 students voting in an election open to more than 18,000 students. More posters probably should be put on doors. 

This is also the second SGA presidential election in three years which saw results contested. In the spring of 2013, Keyana Boka won the SGA presidency, but controversy and havoc followed when opponents wagered that she illegally had the Honors College send an email in support of her candidacy. Although SGA’s Judicial Council disqualified Boka, Howard Bailey, vice president for Student Affairs, reinstated her. 

Maybe the only reason this isn’t three for three is that last year, current SGA President Nicki Taylor ran unopposed.

It’s a shame that this is also happening in a year when SGA has been up to a lot.

From debating smoking at WKU to bringing alcohol to on-campus restaurants, SGA has done quite a bit this year, and they should be celebrated. 

President-Elect Richey even thought to write a commentary for the Herald to outline his plans for students. Obviously, there are members of SGA who want to help the student body.

However, with shenanigans like this, it’s hard to see why students would want to get involved in SGA or believe it can be an agent of campus change. 

More so, both of these issues need to be put to bed. There is no smoking gun. There is no hotel break-in. There is no blue dress. There are posters accidentally put in the wrong place and forgotten posters on South Campus. Neither of these incidents are why Richey won by more than 300 votes. By continuing this charade, SGA is dragging its name through the mud for no reason.