The election results that everyone on campus is eagerly anticipating are delayed until Friday as a result of accusations of illegal campaigning that have been thrown at each of the candidates. The only thing that all this bickering will accomplish is increasing apathy toward Purdue Student Government.

Somehow, candidates from all three tickets have found reason to launch accusations against either one or all of the other candidates in an attempt to strengthen their own chances at victory. It's absurd and the bickering makes PSG and the candidates look silly.

If they can't even hold a successful election process, then they definitely won't be able to convince students that the government is worthy of involvement.

Each of the candidates has been accused of breaking campaign rules, and each stands to lose a percentage of the total votes that they've received.

The candidates from ticket No. 2, Jim Vaca and Patrick Mondi, have already had 1 percent deducted from their total votes. The reasoning behind this is equally absurd. Because Vaca and Mondi went door to door in Shreve Residence Hall without a permit, 1 percent of the people who voted for them no longer count.

Ticket No. 2 is not the only one that stands to lose votes. Clay Slaughter and Kurt Weiand — ticket No. 1 — have also been charged with illegal campaigning. But the accusations that exemplify the stupidity of this bickering are those against Chris McManama and John Gerber. For them, all charges have been dropped, which illustrates that some — if not all — of this finger pointing is a waste of time.

Is this bickering and the deduction of votes the way to increase voter turnout and PSG support? The obvious answer is no. PSG members should not be able to deduct any percentage of decisions made by the student body. Who are they to say that a student's vote — his decision on a candidate — is no longer valid? This is not how elections function on the national level, and this method of penalization has no place at Purdue. PSG needs to find another way to penalize the candidates who are found guilty of violating campaign regulations.

And for those who launch false or unwarranted accusations, they should also be penalized if the charges are dropped for a lack of evidence. The ultimate price, of course, is paid by the reputation of PSG.