This year, three students ran unopposed for three of the five junior class officer positions. The lack of participation in this election is a result of a new school rule stating that students cannot hold more than one position in class office, commissions and ASB.

With the new rules, those who are passionate about student government can no longer participate in every group that they want to; instead, they are limited to just one.

ASB election rules were brainstormed by ASB and voted on by those present at an ASB Monday meeting a few weeks ago. The rules also changed the prerequisites for running for certain positions, such as ASB vice president and class officers.

For instance, students interested in running for ASB vice  president no longer need ASB experience to do so; this rule allows more students to run for the position and get involved in ASB. ASB also no longer requires candidates to have attended at least three ASB meetings prior to running for office. This rule will most likely be replaced by a system of keeping track of who participates in what events, such as Homecoming and Powderpuff.

Although the new rules allow more students to get involved in ASB, few students actually want to do so.

Students should not be limited in the number of student government positions they can run or apply for simply because there are not enough people who have the desire to get involved. This leaves those who are passionate about bettering the  school unable to make as significant of an impact as they want.

The rule that students can no longer be on two commissions or in class office and a commission has deterred students from running for certain positions, such as treasurer of their class, because they would prefer to be on a commission. For the upcoming year, no eligible candidates wanted to run for senior class treasurer, forcing someone to switch from another position.

Additionally, the rule has caused a decrease in the number of both commission and class office applicants, leaving spots open for those students who are merely interested in boosting their resume or those will not actually contribute to the commission or group that they are a part of.

The better approach to enabling more students to become involved in government is to allow students to hold one elected position and one position that is selected by ASB. Another option is to give priority to those students who are new to student government, while still allowing students who are already involved to hold more than one position if they are the most qualified or if no one else is interested in the position.

Although the purpose of these rules is to allow more people to get involved and limit stress, the students who are most interested in making a change in student government are not able to leave a mark or pursue their passions as much as many of them would like. This new rule, despite its good intentions, may just do more harm to the school.