Students’ Association Senate elections begin Monday as 15 undergraduates vie for 11 seats. The election will also be the first time the senate uses a Web-only voting system.
The new system will be easy for students to use, according to senior and ITS Student Senate Liason Daryl DuLong. “It looks like an online poll, which should be familiar to most people,” he said.
DuLong helped design the system that should be an improvement over the former system.
Races
The Towers area race is the most competitive with five senators competing for two seats. Incumbent Susan B. Anthony senator and junior Andrew Baukney and incumbent Residential Quad senator and sophomore Monica Reyhani will face newcomer sophomores Tyler Ballew, Pete Nabozny and Keith Rosenberg.
The Fraternity Quad race features junior incumbent Susan B. Anthony Alex Voetsch versus senior Jake Luft.
The Residential Quad race consists of three people vying for two seats ? sophomore Tom Hayes is running against freshmen Stephanie Yurchyk and Ben Ratner.
Four races will be uncontested ? Take Five Scholar Martin Kulli for off-campus, freshman Matt Goldblatt for Sue B., incumbent Graduate Living Center senator junior Eric Lunin and seniors Jonathan Durfey and Rob Kamen for the two Hill Court positions.
Goldblatt is the only candidate running for one of two seats in Sue. B.
“When I look at the list of candidates, I’m slightly disappointed that more of the students who had initially expressed interest in the senate did not choose to run,” Conner said. “This is in no way a fault of the election committee ? I think it was well-advertised and fairly run, but it seems that students viewed senate, class councils and hall councils as mutually exclusive endeavors.
“Perhaps we need to make it clear that you can be involved in all those things simultaneously.”
The new online system will allow for write-in candidates.
Both Conner and Duzlak feel that the new system will increase the lackluster underclassmen turn out over the past couple of years for fall elections.
“Web-voting will make it easier for upperclassmen to vote, because many of them are not familiar [with the old system using] telnet,” Duzlak said. “As far as a significant increase in turnout, I personally don’t think that will happen, because students, first of all, have to care enough to vote in the election.”
Both are excited about seeing new faces in the meetings Monday nights at 9 p.m. in the Gowen Room.
“I’m always excited to see new faces. My hope is that those who have decided to run for the senate are really committed to working in student government,” Conner said.
Class council elections for the sophomore and junior classes will happen at the same time as the senate elections.
“Overall the turnout is really, really good,” cabinet member and sophomore Stacey Poloskey said. “I’m really pleased with the interest.”
Freshman class council elections will take place next Wednesday night in the Gilbert Community Room and the Sue. B Solarium ? six council members will be elected from Sue. B and four will come from the Quad.
Polls open at 10 a.m. Monday and will close Wednesday at 10 p.m. Results will be available later Wednesday evening.
Reporting by Todd Hildebrandt.
