A BlitzMail debate erupted yesterday between Student Assembly presidential and vice presidential candidates after a student notified them that he believed two candidates had removed others' posters from his residence hall.
After discussing the ethics of such actions, some of the candidates concluded that lack of public discussion about their platforms had placed too much emphasis on their posters and resolved to hold a final debate before the elections.
The removal and defacement of posters has been an issue of concern during this campaign, according to every one of the presidential and vice presidential candidates.
Carlo Corti '98, an undergraduate advisor on the first floor of Mid-Fayerweather residence hall, said he saw two Assembly candidates, whom he refused to name, along with a third person taking posters down from a bulletin board in the residence hall at about 4 a.m. yesterday.
Corti said one of the candidates told him they were moving their posters to "more prominent locations."
After the candidates left the residence hall, Corti said, only their posters remained in the building, when previously all candidates in the election had posters displayed on bulletin boards.
At noon yesterday, the only candidate posters displayed on bulletin boards on all floors of the Fayerweather cluster, Ripley, Woodward and Smith hall were for presidential candidate Unai Montes-Irueste '98 and vice presidential candidate Bill Kartalopoulos '97.
Director of Student Activities Linda Kennedy said she and the Election Advisory Committee are "not even considering" taking action for candidates taking down opponents' posters.
She said there is nothing in the revised election guidelines prohibiting candidates from removing other candidates' posters.
Corti said he sent a BlitzMail message to the candidates he had seen in the building asking them if they had torn down opponents' campaign posters. He said one candidate responded and said he had removed the posters.
Vice presidential candidates Joan Ai '98, Bill Kartalopoulos '97 and Chris Swift '98 all denied having ever removed the posters of other candidates from bulletin boards.
Presidential candidates Sarah Cho '97, Jon Heavey '97, Scott Rowekamp '97 and Steve Salemi '97 also denied having ever removed the posters of other candidates from bulletin boards.
Presidential candidate Unai Montes-Irueste '98 did not deny having ever removed the posters of other candidates, and instead said he did not "want to play a part in pointing fingers" at other candidates.
"But we all know that this is not the first time that anyone has ever removed anyone else's posters," Montes -- Irueste said.
Montes -- Irueste said he admires Corti for bringing the incident to the public, and he said he thinks Corti took that action so students can become informed.
All candidates said they thought posters should be for name recognition only, yet all said they plan to put more up in the next few days among other campaign strategies.
"I believe [removing posters] shows a complete lack of respect for the other candidates, all of whom have put a lot of our own money and time into posters," Rowekamp said.
Ai said, "posters should not be the campaign -- issues should be."
The final debate, which will be held in the Fayerweathers, is scheduled for Monday night at 7 p.m.
