Campaigners woo voters with root beer, dinosaurs

Just because the elections have begun doesn't mean the campaign has ended. The three competing IU Student Association tickets continue the struggle for a win with only the remainder of today left for students to vote. Voting for this year's election ends tonight at 11:59 p.m.\nTuesday, Unity tried to get its name out campus-wide, campaigning at residence halls, in classrooms, the IMU and around academic buildings, all while staying within regulations and receiving positive feedback, said presidential candidate Aaron Radez.\n"Students would stop by and say, 'Hey I saw your commercial on MTV, what can I do to help,'" said Radez. "We're actually out to help them. I think students were happy to see us stop by and remind them to vote."\nWednesday will bring much of the same, talking to students and hitting the street, said Radez, although he can't move.\n"I was campaigning and fell down some stairs, injuring my leg and ankle," said Radez. "I'm playing the war room role. We have self-motivated candidates out there that really believe in what we are offering students."\nLiving up to the middle portion of their motto, "College -- Basketball, Beer and Books," Crimson offered students a keg, until the police arrived, said vice-presidential candidate Grant McFann.\n"We set up a keg of root beer to raise awareness to the extent which police regulation has overwhelmed the student body," he said. "We were at the Arboretum gates for an hour and a half, and we were kicked off -- for a keg of root beer -- and it shows that students are targeted."\nThat didn't stop the campaign, said McFann.\n"From there we went door to door on campus trying to get people to vote and get our name out," he said. "We're definitely going to have something big tomorrow to catch everyone's attention and let everyone know everything is close and their votes are really important."\nAction definitely got the attention of the student body, said presidential candidate Laura Walda.\n"We had guys in dinosaur costumes running around campus," she said. "They had on Action t-shirts, and we had Action people running around with them passing out information"\nAction also campaigned at dorms, fraternities, sororities and classrooms, passing out Mardi Gras beads, door hangers and candy to get student's attention and get them to vote, said Walda.\nMuch of the same will be in store for Wednesday, she said.\n"I don't know if we'll still have the dinosaurs, but we'll be handing out more candy and more information," said Walda. "And maybe something else funny, but we'll definitely be getting the word out."\nRadez said that Unity's strong marketing campaign, including commercials on MTV, would leave Unity with the victory.\n"I don't think one issue really sets us apart," he said. "It comes to day in and day out getting the word out to students."\nMcFann said that handling issues students actually care about would land Crimson the victory.\n"They key difference between ourselves and our opposition is that we aren't pretending or playing games or playing politics," he said. "We're college students. People want their voices represented accurately, not with games or politics."\nRepresentation and strong issues will set Action apart from the rest, said Walda.\n"I think what's going to win for us is that we have such great representation in all areas: the greek system, off-campus and on-campus," she said. "I think we actually have issues that matter to a lot of students and that will get them to vote"