Grad students must take stand, vote

Moradian is director of elections for the Graduate Students
Association.

By Mike Mkhitar Moradian

Last year, after 11 years the Graduate Students Association
elections passed the required 10 percent turnout for any ballot
initiatives to take effect. It is my wish to double last
year’s turnout and conduct a successful election this
year.

The question is why should graduate and professional students
vote in the GSA elections? And, what was the instrumental factor
that awakened the dormant graduate and professional student
population last year?

Voting is a fundamental right in a democracy, yet its practice
has not been able to find its way effectively among the graduate
students at UCLA. Although, a significant portion of the graduate
and professional students come from parts of the world with rather
different voting rights and election procedures, they will vote if
they find satisfying returns or effectual incentives. By
incentives, I do not mean a free coffee coupon or a gift
certificate, but on the contrary, I am talking about the actual
services and rewards that graduate students will receive if they
actively participate in the GSA elections and the graduate
government affairs in general.

We should elect the GSA officers based upon their capabilities
to reflect the issues that are of great concern to graduate and
professional students, not solely to fill the offices. Therefore,
if the graduate student body wants the school’s
administration to take our issues seriously, it must participate in
this election in great numbers to show how important are these
issues.

About 11,000 students, almost one-third of the student
population at UCLA, are enrolled in the graduate and professional
programs. There are several issues such as health care,
transportation, parking and financial support that directly affect
our quality of life and education at this institution. If we
continue to confine ourselves to the laboratories and libraries and
ignore our rights, neither we nor the GSA will be able to take
immediate and effective action against decisions that might
jeopardize our career as researchers and professionals. Therefore,
we should play a more active role in the processes that could
influence our daily activities.

We can start accomplishing this by exercising our right to vote
in this coming GSA election. In doing so, not only do we have our
voice heard, we establish a strong tie between the graduate
students and build upon UCLA as a great educational
institution.

The online elections were the reason that after more than a
decade, there was a significant increase in turnout. This is a
small example of success if the elected or appointed officials are
well qualified and aware of our problems. The first step is to
participate in the GSA elections in order to choose the best
representatives and to decide if the referenda on the ballot has
any positive impact on our lives as graduate students. The outcome
of the polls will represent how we prioritize the importance of
issues such as health care and the Big Blue Bus.

Eventually, a great voter turnout will solidify the graduate and
professional student voice and concerns for the betterment of the
graduate life and education at UCLA.