“I think they are high-energy, absolutely committed to making Harvard better, able to galvanize interest in their peers, and very thoughtful about initiatives that would make a real difference,” he said.

LEVELLING THE FIELD

Despite Dingman’s words of praise, Heine and Turban acknowledged that some may consider their ticket premature, as both candidates are sophomores in a race full of juniors. Still, Heine and Turban argued that their relative youth is not a disadvantage.

“I think the UC can be run by anyone who is willing to work hard, is someone who really cares about other people, and is someone who connects with administration,” Turban said.

While a two-sophomore ticket has never captured the presidency, Heine’s FOP co-leader Elizabeth W. Pike ’15 said that Heine’s ability to connect with students across all classes would benefit the UC.

“He comes at everything with fresh eyes, and is really excited to make everything better,” said Pike, an inactive Crimson editor. “He’s gotten to know so many people on this campus already that he’s tapped into many different perspectives.”

In a year when every other ticket includes at least one woman and one person of color, Heine and Turban also acknowledged that a pair of white males may seem unrepresentative of a heterogeneous student body. However, Heine argued that these criticisms overlook less visible aspects of diversity.

“When we constrain diversity to a race, a creed, a location, I think that is an oversimplified metric of what diversity is,” he said. “I grew up in northern Minnesota, which is a very rural location. I actually thought the Ivy League was pretty uptight and pretentious, and I was going to go wherever the financial aid was the best. Just because I’m a white male doesn’t mean I lived a life of privilege at all.”

Heine and Turban have advocated for a major change to UC policy that, they said, will encourage the type of inclusion that they’re working for: they want the Council to resume funding alcohol for student groups, a practice which ceased in 2008.

“It’s about building a more inclusive Harvard, which is one of the world’s most exclusive clubs as is,” Heine said. “We want to make inclusive spaces where people can have a good time, where people can really connect with their class and build a community.”

Heine and Turban hope to use UC-funded alcohol to lessen disparities in funding among social groups and clubs.

“I don’t think there should be a shadow of socioeconomic background in how successful your club is,” Heine said. “Harvard is all about levelling the playing field and making it a meritocracy.”

A LITTLE LEVITY

Watching Heine and Turban mug for a photo with a very amused Ballmer, one thing is clear: while their aims may be serious, the two plan to have a good time getting there.

“Our primary goal is not concerned with winning,” Heine said. “Turbs and I want to have a meaningful campaign, but we want to have a lot of fun doing it.”