Iowa was recently rid of the overwhelming flood of political pandemonium that accompanied the first-in-the-nation caucus, but that doesn’t mean Iowa State is done with presidential elections.

The ISU Student Government 2016-2017 president and vice presidential candidates have announced their bids and their campaigns are in full swing.

Running for the Student Government president, with their vice presidents, respectively, are:

• Cole Staudt, junior in political science, and Cody West, junior in biology. Facebook. Website.
• Zackary Reece, junior in political science, and Cole Button, sophomore in finance. Facebook. Twitter. 
• Raghul Ethiraj, senior in aerospace engineering, and Akol Dok, senior in political science. Facebook. Website.

Student Government, formerly known as the Government of the Student Body, elections have a history of not generating a high voter turnout. The last few years’ worth of turnouts have teetered around 10 percent of the student body.

But students need to realize this simple fact: Student Government holds a lot of power on this campus.

It allots money to student organizations. Its senators are advocates for the student body. It’s the organization students should count on to spearhead initiatives that benefit campus.

It has pushed through the e-cigarette ban, the Walk Your Wheels movement, to name only a few, and some senators are working with the university to create some sort of spring celebration; asking administration to help develop a policy to address anonymous cyberbullying on campus and are currently in the works to push an alcohol amnesty bill that would call for the implementation of a policy that allows students to seek medical attention without fear of punishment.

All that under consideration, it’s obviously important the leader of Student Government must be a careful selection.

Student Government makes its money from mandatory student activity fees, which are paid by all ISU students. The majority of this money — about $2.5 million — is spent to, “enhance student’s experiences at Iowa State University and specifically in student organizations,” according to the Student Government website. The Senate each year is allocated money to spend at its discretion, an amount that can range from $21,000 to $45,000. We need a student president who will be wise with the money that comes directly from the students he or she helps lead.

The leaders of Student Government, especially the president, work closely with administration on pushing through policies and offering student input on university-wide initiatives or changes; therefore, it is essential the Student Government president has a healthy relationship with the ISU administration.

ISU students need to take this election seriously, as it’s the most important election that will affect their day-to-day lives when it comes to how they experience college. It’s not a difficult task. Look up each candidate’s Facebook page, read a bit about their platforms on the Daily and vote March 1 and 2.