Election Fever: President

The campaigning is well underway, so at what is essentially the halfway point of campaigning, let's have a look at those taking a shot at the top job

• Mark Conway


• Eamonn Gardiner


• Ruán Dillon McLoughlin

Mark Conway:


Day One: Not a sight of him. No posters, no manfesto, no presence on campus whatsoever yet. If he's going to make a serious attempt for president, then he needs to up his game quick.

Day Two: Oh dear... Maybe he shouldn't have upped his game. Mark finally appeared at his stand with some election propaganda. Propaganda which called for Joesph Fritzl to be kept locked up for life. Something tells me he's not going to make a serious attempt for president after all. Despite what Mr. Conway claims, "there's no such thing as bad publicity" may be a mantra that comes back to haunt him.



Eamonn Gardiner:


Fairly decent start, posters across most of the key areas. The gnomes that appear in one of his posters is fairly worrying, there is a danger that Eamonn may end up flooding the campus with gnomes on Thursday (That may sound crazy, but remember the "builder" and "vote for the Smarty" campagains?).

Second poster much stronger, plays on his experience, which is his strongest asset in this campaign. Strange that they don't mention what he's running for though. Some very strong ideas, with quite a bit of nobility involved (offering 10% of his wages to create a Non-Sabbat officer budget).

He's been quiet enough around campus, seems to be doing the decent thing by trying to serve his current mandate while seeking a new one, unlike past re-electioneers (e.g. Paddy McHugh taking a week off to campaign for President)



Ruán Dillon McLoughlin


By far the best start of the three; a nice variety of posters are everywhere, from Cappavilla to the Schuman, even off campus in the shops. A lot of people on the ground, swarming around with his t-shirts and manifesto. Also, has created one of the most memorable campaign videos I've seen (I recommend looking it up).

So, the sheen is quite good, how about the policies? Well, there are some good ones in there, mixed in with quite a few more unusual ones. Suggestions of a 24 hour library and a buffet style super website seem a bit too far-fetched. It may seem cynical, but these seem like vote grabbers more than real policies. Still seems like quite a strong candidate however.

AND THE WINNER IS?

At this point, it's looking like a two-horse race, with Eamonn and Ruán well ahead of Mark. Eamonn has the experience, but Ruán's campaign has much more presence and glamour attached to it. It's looking likely to be a victory for Ruán at this stage.