Political campaigns are often marked with simple, 10-word answers to complex problems. But after the 10-word platitudes are spoken, there needs to be substance beneath those words. Not more words, not endless meetings, but action.

Our university is facing an $8 million budget cut, threatening to raise your tuition, putting college out of reach for many. Our university system attempted to set up their own private courtroom where they can suspend or expel students for simple off-campus city ordinance violations, even if the student is found innocent. And the new Davies Student Center is being designed with mere lip service to the already voiced environmental concerns of the student body.

We love UW-Eau Claire, but we’re not running to be the head of the school spirit squad and we’re not running for some high school student council, passing out candy in exchange for votes and promising to have more school dances.

We are running to be your elected voice, advocating on your behalf with leaders both in Madison and here in Eau Claire. We are running because we understand that while having change we can believe in is a laudable goal, it can only occur from change we can influence.

If we want to see a change in how Madison views our tuition and our basic legal rights, we need real leadership that does more than just pass resolutions on scraps of paper. We need leadership that can and already has established personal connections to the decision-makers in Madison.

Unfortunately, for most of the past year, our own state legislators had no idea who was running our student government, leaving the student voice unheard again and again while our budget was being cut and our tuition was being raised. The Brewster-Tabrizi ticket has already met with all our area legislators twice in the past three weeks to ensure the student voice is heard in this upcoming budget. Kathleen Vinehout, who represents our campus in the state Senate, is the Chair of the Higher Education Committee and has been very receptive to our communications and appreciative of the student perspective.

Current Senate administration was also unwilling to stand up for the student voice when they did not work to ensure the new Davies would be built in a truly sustainable fashion. When the student body approved the spending on the new Davies, the students voted over 2-to-1 in favor of a portion of that money to go toward making Davies environmentally sustainable. But the current administration doesn’t seem too concerned with supporting the sustainability initiative already approved by students.

Like many students, we welcome a new Davies Student Center because we understand that a new student center will expand opportunities for students. But we need to remember who this building is being built for and who’s paying for it. There is no federal stimulus money for this project. Neither the state nor the UW System is contributing one penny to the project. The new Davies is being funded 100 percent by your student dollars. Your voice should be the only voice that matters when we design the new Davies.

The Brewster-Tabrizi ticket has developed an ambitious yet attainable agenda that changes the way our voice is heard at both the state capitol and here in Eau Claire by ensuring greater student influence and control. While we do not have enough space to lay out point-by-point the rest of our platform, you can read more about our goals and objectives at our Facebook group: “Brewster-Tabrizi for Student Body President and Vice-President.”

But to enact our agenda, to restore your voice, we will all need student Senators who will support these reforms. A number of Senate candidates have decided to come together to support our platform and represent you. These Senate candidates are calling themselves Students for Campus Progress, and they too need your support and your vote.

If you’re content with a Student Senate that tries to keep all of its Senate meetings to under an hour so everyone can get home and watch American Idol, we’re probably not the ticket for you. But if you’re looking for a team that has the creativity, knowledge, experience and ability to get results, we would be honored to have your support and your vote this April 13-15.

Brewster is a senior economics major and guest columnist for The Spectator.