The Associated Students debates begin today.

For the next three days, candidates running for an executive position on A.S.’s newly established board of directors will debate in front of Hepner Hall on Campanile Walkway. These students will represent the interests of San Diego State students on campus and abroad for the next academic year.

Student government is a strong sedative for many students at SDSU. Even though only about 10 percent of students actually vote in the election in the average year, the elected students make key decisions that impact student life on campus for an entire year. Student government played a large role in changing the policies regarding bike and skateboard laws on campus, and it will greatly influence whether smoking will be completely banned from campus in the near future. Each of the elected will also receive a salary of nearly $27,000, not to mention the portion of student fees they’ll be deciding how to spend. You might want to make sure you don’t despise these candidates before you allow either of the aforementioned to happen.

Today, the debate features candidates for the vice president of university affairs and vice president of finance. Tomorrow’s debate will feature vice president of external affairs and executive vice president and Thursday is for the presidential candidates. All debates take place from noon to 1 p.m.

Even if you don’t think voting in student government elections will change the world, don’t miss this chance to have your voice heard. Voting on WebPortal takes minutes, and the outcome of these elections can have a potentially dynamic impact on your time at SDSU.

Check out pages two and three for today’s candidate bios. We’ll be printing these every day of a debate. Look for our endorsements on Monday when voting begins.