Although the Undergraduate Council was a co-sponsor of a recent event known as HYPE '96, it hasn't exactly been the embodiment thereof.

The general elections for the council began yesterday with little fanfare, and many students remained unaware or uninterested in the elections.

"Publicity has been a little low; I think everyone on the U.C. will admit that," said Marco B. Simons '97, a former council executive who is running for the council this year.

Students can vote for their house or Yard district representatives by logging into the "fas" network and typing "ucvote" at a "%" prompt.

The elections will continue until 5 p.m. Friday.

Voter turnout as of last night was low, ranging from one vote cast in Dudley House to 94 in the Canaday-Union district.

Members of the council's Election Commission said they expect a larger turnout towards the end of the voting period.

But despite the commission's promises, candidates were growing impatient yesterday.

Robert R. Porter '00 criticized the lack of general election information distributed to the public and suggested that the council attempt to educate more first-years on the role of the council.

"Not many freshmen know what the U.C. is about, what it does, or that the election is going on," said Porter, who is running in the North Yard district.

Commission and council members said students will see a great deal more publicity efforts over the next few days.

"I think now that most election details are settled, things will proceed a lot more smoothly," Simons said.

Gregory M. Heestand '98, the Election Commission member in charge of publicity, could not be reached for comment yesterday.

Of course, some of the houses, such as Lowell, Winthrop, Mather and Dunster, have uncontested elections.

Election Commission member Stephen E. Weinberg '99 encouraged voting in these districts anyway.