The Student Government Association will be holding a run-off election between Senator Demario Jones and Vice President Chris Nish on Monday, April 26. While Jones managed to accumulate the most votes, he failed to achieve the mandatory 50 percent plus one of the student votes to win the presidential seat in the SGA.
The elections turned out 1,734 votes this year, which according to Jones was one of the highest turnouts for SGA elections.
For the second consecutive year, the SGA is forced to hold a run-off between two of the presidential candidates. Students will be able to vote between Jones and Nish next Monday starting at 8 a.m. and ending at 11:59 p.m..
“I will do what I have to do to get through Monday, knowing that Tuesday will be the final results although I wish it was over now,” Jones said.
While Nish and Jones prepare for another election, SGA senator and former presidential candidate Ryan Brown plans to remain in SGA and help improve the school.
“Of course I will continue in SGA. I just want to create a better connection with the students and SGA,” said Brown.
Campaigning for the two candidates will resume until 7:59 a.m. on Monday. Both candidates plan to make the students aware of their plans for the school through their newest campaign efforts.
“I plan to continue campaigning through sheet signs and face-to-face interactions with students,” said Nish.
Hopefully this runoff will bring forth new voters. When polling the VSU student body, many students were either unaware of the election or simply chose not to vote.
“I didn’t vote because I don’t think it would make too much of a difference,” Chandler Cox, sophomore communications major, said.
However, the entire student body didn’t share Cox’s views. Kayla Prine, freshman nursing major, voted for Jones because she agreed a lot with his platform. Other students voted despite knowing little about the election.
“I knew a little bit about it; I didn’t know any of the candidates but I voted anyway. I voted for Nish, and the other people I didn’t know, but since I started voting I figured I should finish,” Olivia La Selta, freshman art major, said.
While the SGA president will be determined next week, the rest of the officers have been determined for the 2010-2011 school year with the exception of the freshman senators, who will be elected next year.
Vice President: Adrian Gibson
Comptroller: Ernie Prencke
Secretary: Avraye Henry
Senators: Racheal Holley, Shaun Folay, Ashley Cave, Craig Black, DeAndre Jones, Christophe Reid, Whitney Smith, Jeffery Brown, Minnette Lee, Deborah Fung-A-Wi, Aubrey Dowis, Terrica McNeair, Blakely Merritt, Storm Richardson, Courtney Sumpter, Janelle Scott, Jennifer Stakich, Stephen Arich, Emily Langston, Bianca Thomas, David Auguste, Michael mcKerson, Erika McCoy, Sakeena Leben, Jerkendra Holloway, Patrick heenan, Helen Burkett, Shaquandra Mesidor, Kelton Morgan, Gregory Briscoe, Jerico Phillips, Sharde Bradham, Brittany Briscoe, Jamie Conner, Johnathan Lozano, Laura DiBiase, Yannick Gill, Angelinque Leonard, Ibone Carter