The candidates for president and vice president of the Undergraduate Council have adorned their posters and campaign fliers with comprehensive and impressive-sounding lists of achievements on the council.

But as voting season began yesterday, the candidates accused each other of taking credit for council accomplishments in which they played merely a tangential role.

The strongest vitriol has been aimed at candidate and current President Robert M. Hyman '98-'97, the clear leader in the field, according to a Crimson poll conducted over the weekend.

One of the accomplishments listed most proudly on Hyman's campaign posters is receiving the "first public reaffirmation" from Dean of the Faculty Jeremy R. Knowles of Harvard's commitment to need-blind admissions and need-based financial aid.

Knowles himself, however, disagreed.

"Certainly NOT the first time," Knowles said in a written statement last night. "It may be the first time the [council] has heard it, but I've said it to [literally] thousands of alumni, and to the Faculty, and will, I'm sure, say it--often--again!"

Hyman also took credit on campaign posters for working to restore federal financial aid cuts.

One campaign flyer reports that "Rob and [running mate] Lamelle [D. Rawlins '99] supported a financial aid phone bank and rally in the fall."

In fact, Hyman didn't even attend an October 31 statewide rally for financial aid in Boston. And Hyman played no part in the council's drive to encourage students to telephone their representatives in Congress, charged council Treasurer Edward B. Smith III '97, another presidential candidate.

"I thought of, sponsored and managed the phone bank over two days," Smith said. "I don't recall seeing Rob there. If he was there, it was only for a moment. It's ridiculous to me how he can cite that."

Hyman said he has supported financial aid efforts within the council. He also pointed out that Rawlins did attend the rally and said she has also helped with financial aid efforts.

Smith also accused Hyman of taking credit for financial reforms that Smith himself had initiated as treasurer.

One of Hyman's campaign posters reads: "Rob, last year as chair of the grants process and this year as Presi- dent of the New UC, has ensured the financial accountability of the Council."

This is untrue, Smith said.

"Other than voting for it, it's unclear to me what Rob did to warrant placing it on his poster," said Smith, who placed third in The Crimson's weekend poll.

Hyman denied that he was taking undue credit.

He blamed Smith for being lax about record-keeping unless the president himself supervised.

"It was me who demanded that Ed keep good records," Hyman said. "Ed wanted me to sign blank checks."

Candidate Rudd W. Coffey '97, who ran second in The Crimson's poll, further criticized Hyman for claiming that this year's council had passed the most legislation ever.

"We have no idea how many resolutions were passed in 1984 or 1985 or any number of years. We simply do not have those records," said Coffey.

Hyman said that the claims are based on research of previous years done by the council president from the fall of 1994, David L. Hanselman '94-'95.

"But what does it matter if nine years ago or 11 years ago, they passed one more bill than we did?" Hyman said. "The point is we're headed in a new direction with this council."

Hyman is not the only one targeted by accusations of exaggeration. Coffey has also been criticized for hypocrisy.

In a flyer Coffey distributed Sunday night, he claims that "[his critics] say I want to take your money. Truth is I voted against raising termbill fees and sponsored your freedom to choose not to pay at all."

But in an e-mail sent out to the council early last month, and later posted on the harvard.general news group, Coffey proposed a resolution that would make the council termbill payment mandatory, while increasing the fee from $20 to $40.

"Some of these things are relatively shady," said Brian R. Blais '97, who is not running for president or vice president.

Blais said most candidates' statements of "support" and "helped to pass" were too vague to be very meaningful.

Smith took particular aim at Hyman on this front.

"Rob has the ability to take credit for things he was only tangentially involved with," Smith said. "He was president, these things appeared under his watch, but they were not his doing."

Coffey admitted that most campaign posters did give an inflated impression of candidates' achievements, but said it was necessary for the campaign.

"None of those are things I did by myself," said Coffey. "But people are not going to vote for the Campus Life Committee that I led, but me."

Voting in the first-ever campus-wide election of the council president and vice president began yesterday and will continue until Friday at 5 p.m