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Editorial: Homecoming elections process flawed


Each fall, UTM students cast their votes for Homecoming Queen, to be crowned during Saturday’s game against Jacksonville State.

The logistics for the process can be very tedious, from assigning people to work the polls, to making sure that every candidate is qualified to receive such a dubious honor.

Chances are, the average student doesn’t realize what goes into this process.

Gone are the days of long hours spent in the UC Legislative Chambers painstakingly counting every last vote.

Next week begins another first for homecoming elections: Internet voting.

While we think this is the right direction to go, it is certainly not flawless.

Provisions for this new system are that all you need to cast your vote is your student ID number (so-called “960 number”) and your birthday.

Most sponsoring organizations already have both of these pieces of information for their membership. It goes without saying that ballot box stuffing can and may occur.

While in the grand scheme, Homecoming elections are not considered a crucial matter, we call on the SGA to rethink their strategy for general elections next April.