Student Government leaders have dropped the ball in the upcoming spring elections and appear unwilling or unable to operate toward fulfilling their responsibilities to the student body. With proceedings for the spring election set to start in nine days, only two of nine members currently reside on the Elections Commission. There appears to be little hope the rest will be appointed in time.

In what has become one of the truly lasting traditions at N.C. State, members of Student Government have allowed personal squabbles and infighting to overshadow the need for action. After Student Body President Bobby Mills failed to appoint elections commissioners in the fall, the task was put upon Student Senate President Greg Doucette. Although his deadline to appoint commissioners is less than a week away, until now, Doucette has seemed content to continue the trend of idleness.

The ineptitude of Mills and Doucette is even more frustrating given that they were in place during the fall election — where they experienced the exact same problem. Instead of learning from past mistakes, they have compounded their inefficiency by failing to even match last semester’s pathetic standard of appointing only a chair and two commissioners to fill the nine positions.

Given the consistency with which candidates are accused of cheating during Student Government elections, it is essential to have a competent, fully trained Elections Commission in place well before the proceedings start. At this point, even if individuals are approved by the Senate in time to have any effect on the elections process, it is unlikely they will have any time to prepare for their appointed positions.

Members of Student Government need to recognize that as elected officials, they are held accountable first to the needs of their constituents — not their personal desires. Their ineffectiveness has started to hurt the student body and it is time to set the petty nay-saying aside.

As it is apparent that neither Mills nor Doucette have performed their elected duties, the charge falls upon Student Senate President Tempore Mike Alston to get the job done. While Alston cannot be held accountable for the actions of his predecessors, it is important that he acts quickly if there is any hope of bringing legitimacy to the spring elections.