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Bandwagon politics dominates intellectualism and debate at Brandeis and leads to the popularity of some pretty terrible political candidates. Despite Brandeis' facade of activism and progressive labels, the Brandeis Democrats dominate the political debate on campus, and rubber-stamping a political party is as dangerous, passive, and anti-democratic. Here are a list of two alternative candidates worth voting for.

Christy Mihos for Governor:
Seemingly like everyone else on this campus, I, at one point or another, was caught up in Deval Patrick's campaign. His message of hope and a different strategy on Beacon Hill was music to my ears and lead me out to create a Facebook group Brandeis for Deval Patrick! over a year and a half ago (which no other student joined for four months). However, throughout the campaign, it has become clear that Deval is no more than an empty suit that realized that labeling himself as progressive is good marketing. Deval refuses to state his position on many political issues. While his website is full of statements on fixing schools and funding communities, Deval is completely unwilling to talk about how he plans on making his ideas happen, especially financially.

Independent Candidate Christy Mihos refuses to ignore the issues facing Massachusetts and does not hide from debate. Christy is the only candidate who is willing to list his position on all the issues on his website, doing so in bullet-point form and avoiding cryptic language designed to confuse voters. This level of transparency proves he is committed to democracy and keeping citizens informed about his ideas. Additionally, the former Clinton-era Republican is willing to tell the truth about what the state must do, even when it hurts. When discussing Proposition 1, his headline campaign item to pump millions of dollars back into Massachusetts communities to better fund schools and safetly, he takes no time in telling citizens where the money will come from: cutting thousands of Massachusetts employees from the state payroll. It hurts, but voters know exactly where he stands.

While Christy's former Republicanism might concern most liberals, his platform is not very Republican. He opposes fare hikes on the MBTA, which fall disproportional on the urban poor in Massachusetts. He is also an avid supporter of gay marriage, abortion rights, indexing the minimum-wage with inflation, and campaign-finance reform. Moreover, Christy states that while he favors the income-tax rollback, his main priority is returning financial aid to communities. Moreover, having a political independent leading Beacon Hill can assure voters that closed-door legislation will not continue to haunt and destroy Massachusetts.

Christy Mihos is issue-based honesty you cannot find in Kerry Healey nor Deval Patrick, and he deserves your vote this Tuesday. www.christy2006.com.

Jill Stein for Secretary of the Commonwealth
This past September, Brandeis' chapter of DFA held a candidates forum on campus, however, current Democratic Secretary of the Commonwealth failed to attend. Such an absence is telling, considering the job of the Secret of the Commonwealth entails being the elections commissioner. Galvin has failed to debate the issues surrounding the state with Jill nor his primary challenger John Bonifaz. For the twelve years Galvin has held the office, he has done little with the opportunity. Moreover, there have been many voting rights abuses in the state and the federal government is monitoring two cities this upcoming election due to excessive issues. This is a poor track record for Galvin and proves that he has not done the job he has been elected to complete.

Jill, a Harvard graduate and physician, has promised to address the voting maladies that face the state. Additionally, she aims to root out special-interest pedaling in the state, enact voter-approved clean elections laws that were killing by Beacon Hill Democrats in 2003, and work against the current system of anti-democratic, closed-door law making that have punished Massachusetts for years and have kept voters and the press outside the workings of the state. Jill Stein is Galvin's only challenger, as the Republican party failed to field any candidates, thus completely negating the “spoiler effect.” Liberals and conservatives alike should feel comfortable in supporting Jill, as she sends a message to establishment politicians that Massachusetts citizens come before special-interests and that there are politicians left to call foul if Democrats misbehave on Beacon Hill. Her campaign has gai ned the powerful endorsements of many news agencies, including the Metro West Daily News, The Waltham Daily News Tribune, and the New Bedford Standard Times, and she deserves your vote. www.jillstein.org