An Associated Students of UNM candidate endorsement forum packed Woodward Hall, Rm. 101 Wednesday when candidates were inundated by a highly unprecedented number of compelling questions.
Students from all walks of life wandered into the large lecture hall, including representatives from Black Student Union, French Club, the India Student Association, the Gymnastics Association, the Student Animal Legal Defense Fund, the World Peace Buddhist Club, Del Otro Lado, the Anime Club, the Ultimate Frisbee Club, physics majors and commuter students randomly hanging around campus.
"I have never in my life seen any ASUNM event attract this number of interested students," elections committee chairman Sully Long said. "In fact, I think that somebody told people that free beer was going to be here or something."
Long added, "That's not cool, man. Not cool at all."
While students did repeatedly ask where the free beer was, they still drummed up a hearty discussion.
Woefully unprepared for such an enormous student response, candidates fumbled for answers to the probing questions. Melinda Stuffy, a Student Animal Legal Defense Fund member asked Bush Is a Rock Star slate candidate Dole Young if he would eat a bug for a dollar.
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"Well, I guess maybe," Young said, looking to his fellow slate candidates for assurance. "Wait! No. No, I wouldn't. Right?"
Stuffy declared that she would not vote for somebody so "lacking in basic ethical principles."
Many students raised concerns about campus safety and what the candidates plan to do about ensuring security.
Senate candidate Bill Dense suggested reducing date rape drug use at fraternity parties and was promptly booed by the entire candidate row. Other candidates took a more reasonable approach.
"I would definitely keep doing the campus safety walk," senate candidate Sayme Olde said. "You see so much when you walk around campus with your group. You get flashlights and everything. Then you tell the administration and they don't really do anything about it. It's loads of fun."
Another concern was the lack of communication between ASUNM and the student body. Lou Brat asked presidential candidate Sen. Donna Tello why the senators haven't created a bill to bypass the University dry campus policy since an informal poll posted in the Dane Smith Hall men's bathrooms indicated that was indeed the case.
"Yeah, um, I don't really know," Tello said. She then turned to ASUNM President Mar°a Elena Juanita Rodriguez y Sanchez de la O - not to be confused with senator candidate Mar°a Elena Donita Rodriguez y Sanchez de la O - and asked loudly, "Can we do that?"
One senator candidate left the forum in tears when asked to spell "superficial." No Drugs, Just Diets candidate Tew Thin later commented that she felt like "the walls were closing in on her."
"I just had to get out of there," Thin said as she made a phone call to her boyfriend. "Hold on a sec. Derek? Where are you? Who are you with? What? What are you doing with her? Oh. Whatever. Bye. OK, where was I? Yeah, I'm a really bad speller. It was intense."
Reel Green, a potential upset presidential candidate and Progressive Student Alliance member, showed up halfway through the forum wearing a skirt.
Despite cheers from the audience, many students were skeptical about Green's credibility.
"Are you sure that skirt goes with your blouse?" Lana Hooch asked. "And what's with those shoes and those tights? Really, man. It's not like it's Thursday night at the Pulse or something."
Green defended his outfit choice, stressing that the blue shoes matched his nailpolish.
"As your president, I will always make stylish choices and nobody will ever lack for a date on Friday night," he said.
The forum ended on a surprised note as a student burst into the room and declared that the free beer was in the "other" room.
