Social networking played big role in WCSA election

By: Judson Hall, Transcript Correspondent

Posted: 11/19/09

Every year in November, the president and vice president of the Wesleyan Council on Student Affairs (WCSA) are elected. This year was no different than any other.

On Nov. 11, the executive officers for the next calendar year were elected. Kyle Herman was elected as president of WCSA, and Sharif Kronemer was elected as vice president. The pair ran against Spencer Meads and Tim Carney.

With the increase in technology, as well as the increase in social networking via the Internet, elections have changed dramatically-especially when it comes to school-based elections.

"We used Facebook as the main source to get the word out," Carney said. "Starting our campaign late, it really aided in letting the Ohio Wesleyan community know who we were and what our platform was about. Within 24 hours, we had nearly 400 members as part of the group. It also gave us a way to connect to our base."

When asked about his platform and its availability, Kyle Herman said, "We also made it available on a Facebook group we created. We used it to spread our message, gain a reasonable estimate of how much support we had and communicate with supporters via messages."

"We also asked our good friend Ben Andrews, a musician, to write a song for us," Herman said. "Sharif made it into a YouTube video, the link for which was distributed in an all-campus e-mail and our Facebook group."

Herman and Kronemer also employed more traditional election strategies, such as going door-to-door in dorms to introduce themselves and talk about student concerns. On election day, they put up signs all over campus reminding people to vote.

Although Carney lost the election, he said he plans to continue to pursue OWU politics.

"I plan on running for class representative in the coming week," he said.

Although both campaigns were different, they did have a similar message. They wanted to bring the student body closer together and get them involved with the school. Both parties said they wanted to make sure each student knows what's going on in WCSA.

They also wanted the student body to have more access to those elected to represent them.

Not everything went according to plan for Herman, even though he ended up winning the election.

"I admit I lost my cool a little bit on Wednesday night when I was rushing around the dorms asking people to vote before the polls closed at 9 p.m.," he said. "I became somewhat frustrated by the large amount of apathy I encountered, and, in retrospect, I think I came off as a little desperate and forceful. I should have been more confident."

Herman and Kronemer have wasted little time since their election.

"Sharif and I are in the process of encouraging both experienced and emerging leaders to run for positions on WCSA. We want our administration to be composed of trustworthy students motivated like us to make OWU even better than it already is," Herman said.

Herman wants this administration to be accessible to students.

"Once we have a full body formed in January, Sharif and I will be focused on achieving the plans we laid out in our platform, which includes taking other students' plans into account as well."

One of the bigger things Herman wants to accomplish as president is to have the student body become more involved.

"I think that we as students, we should always make more of an effort to be informed about what is going on throughout campus," he said. "We have so many talented individuals and groups focused on different things that they would like to share with the rest of us, and yet a lot of students tend to overlook what is going on with groups that they aren't already a part of."