A.S.
Senate election results clear, voter turnout
low
Student
Government: Despite controversial negative
campaigning, a lower than usual voter turnout
and new ballots, A.S. positions were filled
in a blowout election where students like
Erik Jolliff captured more than 73 percent
of the votes.
By
Jeff Overley
On-line Forty-Niner
A
controversial campaign season culminated
last week with blowout victories in Associated
Students Senate executive elections and
a voter turnout dramatically lower than
in 2003.
In the race for president, current A.S.
Treasurer Mike Johnson netted more than
68 percent of the vote, easily besting his
nearest competitor, Armando Aguilar, who
garnered 23 percent of the tally.
"I
can't wait to get started," Johnson
said. "I'm so appreciative of everyone
who supported me. I also would like to congratulate
all the other candidates who won."
The
vice presidential results were even more
lopsided, with Erik Jolliff capturing 73.5
percent of votes compared to runner-up Raemi
Laurel Neils' 15 percent.
And
in the battle for the treasurer's office,
Rebekah Smith snared 65 percent of the electorate,
running away from Joseph A. Baclig, who
finished with 34.5 percent of votes.
The
vote for treasurer was expected to be much
closer, said current Vice President Guido
Piotti. But votes that Baclig, a fraternity
member, had expected from the bloc of campus
Greeks did not materialize to the extent
anticipated, Piotti said.
This
year's campaign featured an unusual level
of strife. Negative advertisements, rare
in races for campus government, sprung up
and attacked Johnson's record as treasurer,
noting that he had presided over funding
cuts and tuition hikes.
Supporters
of Aguilar accused A.S. Elections Commissioner
Michelle Cooper of unfair treatment when
Aguilar was not allowed to participate in
a meet and greet with students as a result
of a flap over the amount of promotional
posters the campaign had used. Students
canvassing for Aguilar also alleged vandalism
of numerous placards promoting his candidacy
that were placed around the school.
With
respect to victory celebrations, Johnson
noted that there was little time to bask
in the glow of triumph. He said that A.S.I.
had signed up more than 700 students who
planned to demonstrate outside Gov. Arnold
Schwarzenegger's office Monday.
"There's
not going to be a honeymoon. We're jumping
straight into this rally on Monday and we'll
keep on running from there," Johnson
said.
Voter
turnout was relatively low for Cal State
Long Beach, which historically has the highest
level of participation in the CSU system.
About 2,669 votes were cast this year, well
below the more than 4,000 votes cast in
last spring's elections.
Piotti
said that less effective campaigning was
a likely cause of the drop.
"There was a lot more outreach in general
[last year]," Piotti said. "A
lot of the newcomers didn't have the experience
in outreach."
All
three of the ballot referendums passed,
including a measure that gives the A.S.
Senate the power to pay senators. Presently,
only the top three elected positions and
the appointed position of student administrator,
which is currently held by John Pabon, are
paid.
The
referendum, which passed with 52 percent
of voters supporting, does not mean that
senators will necessarily be paid, but only
gives the top officials the power to make
such a decision.
New
to the election this year was a ballot that
listed the names of candidates. The ballot
previously used had numbers that corresponded
to a candidate's name listed in a book.
"I
think there was a high probability of error
that way," said Kim Hinckson, advisor
to the A.S. Senate. "The new way is
probably better."
This year's ballots were counted electronically
and were checked three times, Hinckson said.
In
the senatorial and board races, the winners
were:
College
of Business Administration: Addam Goldman
and Shelley Levenson.
College
of Engineering: Asad Sultan and Uduak Joe
Ntuak.
College
of Health and Human Services: Heidi Lizbeth
Chavez and Adam Sturgeon
College
of Liberal Arts: Noelle Bautista Kinley
and Zaira Tinoco
College
of Natural Sciences and Mathematics: Jennifer
Sharp and Kerry Reid
College
of Education: Jessica Viera and Courtney
E. Ronald
Senators-at-Large:
Melissa Duque; Morgan Wheeler; Hiro Okahana;
Daniel Rukhman; Mark Sokolowski and Estee
Sepulveda
49er Shops Board: Jamie A Pollock
University
Student Union Board of Directors: Sean Michael
Kelley; Tyler Whaley and Taylor I. Dudley
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