Meet the candidates: Five juniors jockey for position

The Duke Student Government presidential candidates' experiences vary from DSG vice presidencies to board positions on clubs and independent student corporations. In their three years here, each of these junior men has enjoyed his share of successes and failures.

Jimmy Carter

Junior Jimmy Carter is hoping that Thursday's vote will put him in similar company with his more famous namesake. Currently DSG's chief of staff, Carter was charged last fall with making the cabinet a significant part of DSG. A hodgepodge of different officeholders with varied backgrounds, the cabinet was spurred by Carter to attend legislative sessions and complete individual projects.

The self-proclaimed perfectionist has at times this year put perfection in front of cabinet productivity, becoming too aggressive and unforgiving with cabinet members.

At other times, though, he has managed to inspire a handful of the 25 president-appointed officials to complete projects ranging from a Krzyzewskiville community service project to an elections guidebook.

As a freshman, the star legislator had his eyes set on the vice presidency for facilities and athletics, but lost by 11.6 points. Through the campaign, though, he earned general praise from his DSG colleagues and ran on a platform promoting his then-legislator project-often repeated but never successful-of building bus shelters on West and East campuses and pushing the administration toward a long-term parking solution.

Two years later, the latter initiative remains on his platform just as it is still a significant issue for the entire University.

"I see DSG's role as a lobbyist of the student body," Carter said. "We owe it, for any student who comes to us with a problem, to at least be willing to educate and talk about the issues."

But all this commitment-which includes a spot on the Duke Business Club's board of directors and a seat in the DSG Legislature-combined with his rapid-fire idea generation has often spread Cummings too thin. Sometimes there are so many ideas that few can actually be implemented. He hopes to combat that tendency by surrounding himself with associates who will keep him focused.

"I hope to have given it 110 percent all the time," he said. "I would like to leave knowing that I followed through and gave it the best of my ability."

Vik Devisetty

After developing a sour taste for DSG and many student governance organizations during his freshman year, Vik Devisetty decided he wanted to effect change. Since then, the aggressive, straightforward junior has thrown himself into serving students, whether by planning last year's Last Day of Classes concert or by pushing to extend the fall reading period.

"I go after issues that are tangible to students, relevant to student organizations and important to student life," Devisetty said. "At the end of the year, students should be able to say, 'DSG affected me in some way,' and I think you can say that about me for the last two years in my roles on DSG and Campus Council."

Last year, the Board of Trustees solicited student-generated solutions for social life on campus. Devisetty's plan to improve after-hours transportation, dining and library options during reading periods was the only idea that was carried to fruition.

Devisetty ran for DSG president last year on a platform of reforming the financial aid office, evaluating the use of Trent Dormitory as swing space and allowing advanced placement credits to count for distribution requirements. He carried just 9 percent of the vote and lost by 7.6 points. From that experience, Devisetty said, he has learned humility-and how to effect a lot of change in other DSG positions.

But as president, he hopes to solve the problems he noticed as a freshman. Using his experience leading DSG's internal audit this year, he would like to make DSG accountable and responsive to students.

C.J. Walsh

A strong front-of-the-lines leader, junior C.J. Walsh wants to bring his corporate organizing strategy and fresh face to DSG. Now the CEO of Devil's Delivery Service and one of two students on the Upperclass Residential Life Review Committee, Walsh said he has built success in his corporation by surrounding himself with strong "lieutenants."

"I lead from the front," Walsh said. "I lead like Napoleon, at the front of the battle. I don't expect anything of anyone else that I won't do myself, but I expect dedication and enthusiasm out of my troops."

Walsh would like to bring a CEO's sense of corporate responsibility to DSG. But his lack of government experience may prove to be his biggest weakness. Walsh is the only presidential candidate who has never served on DSG in any capacity. And not since 1997 has a president entered office with no DSG experience. But institutional memory on that election and the internal conflict that followed is disappearing, and Walsh believes that his new take on issues makes him right for the job.

For example, as leader of this year's Last Day of Classes, Walsh has kept the event under budget for the first time in years and promises to draw acts that appeal to every student, regardless of race or gender.

"When I visited Duke as a prospective freshman, everyone was smiling," he said. "As I've worked through my time at Duke, less and less people are smiling. If I came back to Duke and more people were smiling, that would make my work feel loved."

Sean Young

A collaborator who has learned to lead, junior Sean Young has spent his year as DSG's community interaction vice president refining his leadership style. He hopes to use a combination of listening, delegating and understanding to boost the organization's interaction with students.

But at times this year, Young has waited too long to garner consensus on an idea before taking action. He said he has worked hard to balance consensus with leadership and now realizes that students want stronger visionary leadership. "DSG is still struggling with how much it engages the student body. I want to have more interaction with the student body," he said. "I feel like I'm most qualified to represent the student body."

Throughout his Duke career, Young has pushed this cause. He designed an e-mail-based constituency system that assigned each elected legislator to a section of campus to facilitate better communication between elected representatives and students. The system has been inconsistent, failing sometimes because of crashed e-mail servers and at other times because of disinterested legislators.

Either way, though, Young is proud that his freshman project has become a DSG institution. "I feel that if students have noticed a significant improvement in the way DSG interacts with them, I will consider that a success," he said.