In accordance with the Community Editorial Board’s effort to reflect the interests of the Duke student body, we formally endorse Lana Gesinsky for DSG president. After meeting with Drew and Lana on Monday, we were thoroughly impressed with both candidates’ thoughtful campaigns and genuine desire to improve Duke student life. That said, Lana’s three-year tenure in the DSG Senate displays an impressive track record in campus life projects such as Blue Devil Buddies and creating more outdoor seating for dining; we value this experience as our future DSG leader.
Both Drew and Lana champion similar causes such as improved communications between DSG and student groups, centering equity in DSG reforms and strengthening Duke’s social community following two years of COVID-19 protocols. Both advocate for the purchase of alcohol with Duke funds, allowing students to visit local Durham businesses on Duke’s dime and uplifting SHAPE’s mission of combatting sexual assault on campus. In short, both candidates have similar priorities, all of which directly address long-standing student concerns and apathy towards DSG.
The difference between Drew and Lana lies in the breadth of their approaches to these issues. Lana’s platform is admittedly smaller in its scope, focusing on transparent communication with students as a mechanism to push student-identified issues on the DSG agenda. However, the Board appreciates her intentionally concise platform because it provides a clear set of goals that Lana could feasibly achieve if elected as DSG president. Furthermore, the Board viewed Lana’s greater emphasis on transparency as most deeply resonating with our values. Drew’s platform is more broad, and although the promises he makes are noble, we believe that accomplishing all of them would be unrealistic in a single term.
We believe both candidates care deeply about the student body and would fit well as DSG president. Nevertheless, Lana’s platform resonates strongly with the Board’s priorities and we strongly believe she has the organization, passion and experience to follow through with her campaign promises.
The Community Editorial Board is independent from the editorial staff of the Chronicle.
Absent Members: Jeremy Carballo, Kyle Melatti, Danya Belkin
Recused: Amiya Mehrotra, Preston Nibley, Anik Sen
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