Two Student Union election commissioners resigned Thursday night, saying they could not remain objective after one presidential candidate discussed publically what they said was their idea for bringing more speakers to campus during a candidate forum last Thursday.Albert Cahn '07, senior representative to the Board of Trustees and Jason Brodsky '07, director of academic affairs, left their posts on the Elections Commission shortly after the candidate, Senator at Large Shreeya Sinha '09, raised the possibility of endowing a fund to pay for speakers.

She made the comment at the Justice's sponsored candidate's forum. Cahn said he and Brodsky have been working on creating such an endowment for over a year, and they said they were dismayed that Sinha put forth the idea as her own.

"She shouldn't use our work to get a leg up on her opponents," Brodsky said.

But Sinha, who never directly took credit during the forum for the idea of bringing high-profile speakers said she didn't mean to imply that she necessarily suggested the idea first. She said she only wanted students to know that she would follow through on the project.

"One project is everyone's project," she said. "It doesn't matter who gets credit, it matters that it gets done."

Cahn and Brodsky said they have already had several meetings with senior administrators including Senior Vice President for Communications Lorna Miles, Dean of Arts and Sciences Adam Jaffe and Provost Marty Krauss, among others, to discuss the World Speaker Forum.

"We are very disappointed and we want the student body to know that we were the ones behind this," Cahn said. "[Sinha] tried to take credit for work she didn't do."

Sinha said she only brought up the idea because she knew the project was floating around the Union and she had been part of several related conversations.

"It's not a malicious act," Sinha said.

The Union's director of communications expressed disappointment at what he called petty resignations.

"This is probably the most insensitive thing I have ever seen," Director of Communications Brian Paternostro '07 said. "Union officials should not be working for their own credit, but for the greater Union."

Still, Cahn and Brodsky maintained that Sinha was out of line.

"Members of the administration should also know who the people behind this are, and they should not get the idea that this was part of a campaign," Brodsky said.

Cahn added: "This could potentially hurt our ability to advocate for the policy."

Sinha said she would support the idea if elected.

"As president I hope to see to its creation and its success," Sinha said of the endowed speakers fund. "It doesn't matter whose idea it was, as long as it gets done.