Duke Student Government debate nixed upon low attendance

The Duke Student Government presidential town hall debate, hosted by the Alexander Hamilton Society, was canceled due to low student attendance.

The event, scheduled for 8 p.m. Thursday, was supposed to feature debate following questions from the audience. The debate was officially canceled after junior Daniel Strunk, treasurer of AHS and moderator of the debate, asked the audience if there were any undecided voters, and no one responded. There were less than 10 students in attendance, though more than 70 said they were ‘going’ on the event’s Facebook page.

“I am disappointed in the turnout, but it wouldn’t have been fair to the candidates to go through with the town hall,” said senior Ryan Boone, president of AHS. “There were not enough undecided votes to have fair questions for both candidates.”

Boone said that the debate was set for Thursday to accommodate for the candidates’ schedules. He added that the event was scheduled on very short notice and without the collaboration of other student groups.

The event would have provided student voters with a more “hands-on” way to get to know the candidates, Boone said.

There is a DSG presidential and executive vice presidential debate March 3 at 6 p.m. in the Great Hall.

“If anybody had been planning on coming [to the meeting, Thursday], I really encourage them to come out Sunday because there are some really important issues to discuss,” said junior Stefani Jones, a presidential candidate and current vice president for equity and outreach.

Jones and fellow presidential candidate junior Patrick Oathout, the current DSG executive vice president, said they are excited for the opportunity to discuss their ideas at the next debate.