When Elections Get Bitchy

UCL election time brings out the best in everyone.

UCL Elections

Election time: when people crawl out of the holes they’ve been hiding in and suddenly have incredibly important opinions.

The candidates themselves are faced with all manner of choices. How much am I willing to annoy people for my vote? (Usual answer: a lot). Do I try to show I have a sense of humour, and risk not being taken seriously? Or do I put forward my sinfully boring side, and let my manifesto, which realistically hardly anyone reads, do the talking?

And then we have the holier than thou commentators on the action, those who often don’t have the guts to stand themselves (or friendship base/social skills) but are more than happy to nitpick and bitch about those who have the confidence to try. Unfortunately plenty of this has been seen in the current election period, with UCL’s very own The Cheese Grater being top of the culprit list. From their ‘impartial’ interviews with candidates, to their frankly hilarious inflammatory techniques, trying desperately to create a story where there clearly isn’t one. It seems their quest for people ‘to read something intelligent, funny and biting’ has become somewhat of a failure.

Here lies the problem of election season in any of its forms: a complete loss of perspective. Try as you might, it’s hard to not jump on the bandwagon and find yourself getting overexcited about issues which you realistically know nothing about, and will probably soon forget exist.

But by all means this does not apply to everyone. A small step in the other direction and it is very easy to start hating the entire concept of elections, dying inside when someone adds you to yet another ‘vote for me, I’ll give you chocolate’ group. And then you suddenly realise that half the time you’re being harangued by people who you don’t even go to university with.

The best part though: within a month or so, most of us will be wondering what all the fuss was about.