On Oct. 1, the SGA hosted a political debate between the College Republicans and College Democrats. Voter registration was available for attending students.

“Coming into this semester we really wanted to not only increase our communication with the student body, but to also increase and encourage collaboration between both chartered and recognized organizations on campus when a significant issue calls for such an action,” said Le’Darrion Allen, Chief of Staff of the SGA. “From various discussions… with the College Democrats, we found that there was a significant lack of knowledge on campus regarding voter registration among St. Edward’s students.”

SGA has been working to rectify this issue as part of its larger mission to connect with and invite participation from the larger student body.

“This was a good opportunity for SGA to get involved with the student body by educating them about the upcoming elections,” student senator Harrison Hadland said. “We wanted to give students a fun opportunity to get to know SGA and get involved.”

The College Republicans and College Democrats, despite differing opinions, share the same goal in educating and involving the student body. John Wooding, president of the College Democrats, said that the main tool of this debate in getting student involvement is voter registration.

“The cornerstone of any democracy is voting,” Wooding said. “Even though we have a polarized system, we want to show some bipartisanship. We want to show that not everything has to be partisan. We don’t have to hate each other. We can show each other that there’s a human element to politics. These are issues that matter to everybody, and everyone should have input.”

Meghan O’Garr, vice president of the College Republicans, agrees that educating the student body is important.

“I think this was an opportunity to come and learn about each candidate,” O’Garr said. “SGA has worked to make this debate unbiased, which is very important. People will come to hear what you have to say, and hopefully that will spark them to get them more involved.”

The SGA invites the student body to participate in public events and make their voices known.

“In terms of any future SGA politically motivated events, we are planning a public forum.  This forum will provide students with the perfect opportunity to have their voices heard.  We want to ask all students to please come out to this forum and provide us with their opinions and concerns,” Allen said. “More detailed information regarding this event will be coming soon.  SGA wants students to know that their values and ideas matter to us because without them we have no ability to take action.”