Both candidates for USG president came with some good ideas.

Both candidates are running under specific parties and have chosen running-mates.

Both candidates have been involved with USG since they arrived at SIUC. And both candidates have extensive track records within USG.

But only one candidate has the professionalism we think will carry USG.

Running under the Freedom Party, Tequia Hicks, the current vice-president of USG, has what it takes to lead the organization and get things accomplished.

For this Hicks receives our endorsement.

Hicks is a sophomore double-major in political science and philosophy.

The main goals of her party include an increased focus on professionalism within USG, RSO funding and recruitment to the Senate. Aside from in-house cleaning, she wants to focus on specific items such as book prices – what causes the price to be so high and what can be done to reduce them. We particularly liked this idea because of recent news indicating Gov. Rod Blagojevich is also supportive of the issue.

Hicks said she would also focus on the parking situation, with one goal being the acquisition of another parking garage.

But one of the main things we found interesting was her interest lobbying the state – which is why we liked the book prices idea.

She admitted that this semester they did not focus on lobbying as they did in the past, so she wants to get back to that so students will have a voice at the state level.

Rob Taylor, the other candidate for president, also wants to lobby in Springfield, but instead of having the students do it, he wants to spend money and hire someone to lobby. He also wants to hire someone to come in and teach his new staff the procedures of “Roberts Rules of Order” – something we think should be done by those who already know the organization of running a meeting.

Both Taylor and Hicks have vice-presidential candidates for their party, which was an important factor in our decision. Hicks chose to run with Nate Brown, a sophomore in political science who is currently a senator. She chose Brown because she has “worked with him before and whenever he said he would do something he did it on time. He listened before he started talking and I like that,” Hicks said.

But Taylor, also a political science major, did not choose his vice-president because he knew of her and her character, he chose her because he needed someone in order to run.

Hicks wants to focus on the big issues that affect students, and in the process focus on the smaller issues that fall underneath the umbrella.

We like the issues Hicks wants to focus on and we like the approach she wants to take to achieve her goal. Even though she is much younger than her opponent, we think she will be an effective leader and produce results while in office.

We hope her position as vice-president has helped in preparing her for the presidents’ office and being able to run things more professionally.

While we have chosen not to endorse Taylor, we do however believe he is an asset to USG. We think, however, that he will be better off in the Senate, as he has been in the past.

We urge students to vote for Hicks, who has issues on her platform worth fighting for and the professionalism to get things done.

USG elections are Tuesday and Wednesday in the Student Center, Morris Library and Lentz, Grinnell and Trueblood dining halls.

Go out and vote.