Current safety and transportation chair fit for vice president
The vice president position is the most difficult to gauge. While the VP, like any other candidate, must have innovative ideas and show the motivation to carry out plans, he or she must also show a willingness to compromise, to sometimes take the back seat and work with the president to accomplish shared goals. After carefully weighing all four candidates against these qualifications, we have decided to endorse Ryan Bailey for student body vice president.
As a current chairman of the Safety and Transportation committee in senate, Bailey’s devotion to Student Government is apparent. Committed to working toward a safer path to Five Points as well as a multispot parking meter system that accepts various forms of payment, Bailey’s experience in senate has allowed him to build a solid base off which to launch his goals as VP. He is also well-spoken and, as we’ve heard from others, respected by his SG peers.
Bailey is ambitious — in fact, he might even be a little too ambitious. Along with the safety path and parking meter plans, he also hopes to convert USC to a PDF textbook system so students can save money, create an online evaluation bank (essentially a Rate My Professor system for USC) and develop the CarolinaCard into a discount card for students to use off campus. But he claims some of these plans have been kickstarted, and he shows confidence he can push them through.
That’s not to say Bailey’s opponents were not competent as well. But Will Fortanbary, while enthusiastic about the position, was unoriginal and vague in his plans, portraying goals that almost mirrored those of current Student Body Vice President Chase Mizzell in his campaign last year. Moreover, his heavy praise of SG’s current workings and statement that there was “nothing bad about Student Government” indicated to us a lack of fresh ideas and perspectives.
On the other hand, Courtland Thomas, despite his slightly unprofessional campaign video, proved to be a candidate with many strong ideas. Running on the platform of increased multicultural involvement and minority/gender inclusion, Thomas was critical of SG and advocated the branching out of SG leaders to be more in touch with the Carolina community. But for a role that acts as a sidekick to the president, Thomas seemed too forceful with his goals. While his multicultural agenda is a noble cause, it could still be accomplished outside of the SG executive board.
Bailey’s third opponent, Alex Waelde, is thoroughly unfit for the position. He lacks any significant accomplishments in SG or other student organizations, and he seems far too involved in running Five Points bars to have any time to devote to the position. Showing up late for his candidate profile interview, it was clear to us Waelde does not take the position seriously and places his entrepreneurial endeavors ahead of SG. Furthermore, the development of DrinkingTicket, which he claims keeps students safe, is a questionable platform to run on, and his concern for Columbia’s nightlife scene just doesn’t cut it for a student body VP.
These things in mind, we believe Ryan Bailey would be best suited for VP. His goals are concrete, and he has a clear ability to work well with others, as shown by the rapport he has built with his colleagues. As a sophomore, he would also have ample time to accomplish his goals in SG.