For the past two years Ald. Eli Judge has represented the 8th district of Madison’s City Council. He has shown what a student with passion for open and effective government can do for the University of Wisconsin campus and Madison community. I thank him for his service and will be sad to see him go.

Immediately upon entering office, Judge made a name for himself by working for student economic interests. His Photo ID Ordinance, which requires anyone selling back textbooks to present a photo ID, has been tremendously successful in deterring textbook thefts. Similarly, he worked successfully to pass an ordinance requiring landlords to provide photo evidence before withholding a tenant’s security deposit.

Judge was equally successful in promoting student safety. He has worked with the Langdon Street Watch Program, helping residents of Langdon Street make their neighborhood safer by walking the streets at night. Recently, Judge drafted the Downtown Residential Lighting Initiative, which provides money for more streetlights, an essential factor in promoting campus safety.

This is an impressive list of achievements for a first-term alderman. Judge’s work for students even went beyond working for their interests in the council — he has worked tirelessly to bring the workings of city government to students. He holds alder hours on a regular basis, blogs about what is happening in the city and has reached out to student groups around campus. Last spring he even woke up in the middle of the night to check on the victims of the SigEp fraternity fire. He has been a window between campus and the surrounding city of Madison.

Much of Judge’s success as both a candidate and a councilman rose out of his enthusiasm for local government. He approached the job with a vigor rarely seen in local officials. While many will be sad to see Judge leave, there will now be an opportunity for another student to step up. Holding elected office while taking classes is no easy task, and any aspiring candidate will have to be fully committed to the office. Judge should be a model for all future student representatives. For the sake of the University of Wisconsin campus we can only hope the next 8th District Alderperson will approach the job with the same enthusiasm that Eli Judge did.

Andrew Voss ([email protected]) is a senior majoring in political science and history.