Debate turned into argument Wednesday night when the Government of the Student Body senate considered bills regarding the registration process for the upcoming March elections.

The debate became especially heated when two bills clarifying and outlining the registration process failed 19-2-4. The two oppositions and four abstentions did not give supporters the two-thirds majority required to pass the bill.

The bill written to clarify the registration process was contested by Mike Pogge, LAS, on the grounds that specialty seats as part of the registration process diluted the constituency of the college and residential-area seats.

Pogge said the registration process and specialty seats were a violation of the U.S. Constitution.

“Less ethnic minorities will be voting for their college or residence hall seats because they will vote for specialty seats instead,” Pogge said. “Every student at Iowa State has a right to vote for their residence halls or college. And even though it is not our intent to affect these rights, we are still doing it.”

Pogge gave an example of a U.S. Supreme Court case to illustrate how minority and specialty seats were in violation of the Constitution.

However, many members of the senate did not share Pogge’s view of specialty seats and were incensed at the actions he used to delay the registration process.

Christian Edmiston, graduate student senate, said he felt Pogge was trying to hide behind a precedent that was not applicable to the situation at hand.

“What he’s saying, or the precedent that he’s using, was set under different circumstances,” Edmiston said.

“If we lived in a completely racist society, and there was a black and white senator up for each position, all the whites would win because all the blacks would vote for minority seats. That’s the precedent he is using, but I don’t think it’s right,” he said.

Jennifer Spencer, LAS, wrote the two bills. She said by not passing the bills, the senate was violating the GSB constitution.

“Specialty seats were created in the constitution that was created by the senate last year and ratified by the students,” she said.

Spencer also said she respected Pogge’s right to his own opinion but believed his methods were suspect.

However, some senators agreed with Pogge’s stance and stood up for his actions, particularly Steve Erickson, off campus.

“What [specialty seats] do is they say that people are too stupid to get elected through the regular election process so therefore we have to set aside a specialty seat,” Erickson said.

“It is also an insult to the student body because [specialty seats] insinuate that the students are a bunch of racists and would be quick to discriminate based on factors beyond an individual’s control. So therefore, to alleviate the arbitrary whims of this bunch of racists and bigots, you need to have a specialty seat to protect you from them,” he said.

Jamal White, GSB vice-president, said the senators and students needed to understand the seriousness of the situation.

“I don’t know for certain, but there is a possibility that if this is not passed, the entire election can be contested and thrown out,” he said. “So many problems can result from this.”

One of White’s main concerns with the issue was the failure of some senators to give a definitive vote on the bill.

“When you abstain when dealing with something important to the student body and election process, to me that’s not acceptable,” he said. “With the time that we had with this bill, to think about our positions and to talk to our constituents, senators should be able to come up with a yes or no vote.”

GSB President Bryan Burkhardt was upset by what he felt was some senators’ lack of consideration for the students.

“I really think that the subversive measures used were not really how the students felt,” he said. “If senators have problems with specialty seats, they need to address the issue at hand.”

Burkhardt reminded the senators that the purpose of GSB is to serve the students, and not having a registration process is counterproductive to that purpose.

“It’s a violation of the constitution that was voted for by the students of ISU last spring,” he said.

“I am convinced that the GSB needs to work to make the student government and student body stronger. If senators that are currently on are not committed to that goal, I would strongly encourage them to consider resignation,” he said. “I want senators to solicit opinions from their constituents and be the best representatives they can be.”

Burkhardt said he hopes the tension created at Wednesday’s meeting does not hinder GSB’s goals for the semester.

“I’m optimistic that students will still be served by their senators,” he said. “I’m confident that the senators and the executives can work together.”