Two students disqualified for violations in student gov. races

Tensions ran high in Huntsman Hall Sunday night as the Nominations and Elections Committee, after several hours of deliberation, announced the verdicts of three violation rulings and final results of the new student election.

Of the nine freshman running for the president of the 2014 Class Board, Wharton freshman Spencer Penn came out on top with 287 votes.

College freshman Vinny Pujji won the position of executive vice president but was disqualified by the NEC for affixing multiple posters to a kiosk, so the spot went to College freshman Jodi Miller.

College freshman Ernest Owens — who came in third place with 158 votes — was also disqualified based on a violation Spencer filed against him, saying he had improperly helped voters use the voting system.

Owens, according to Spencer and two witnesses who spoke at the hearing, allegedly selected his own name on the ballot and clicked “submit” as he brought his laptop around the Hill dining hall last Tuesday night.

Owens denied the claim, saying that he did not let voters use his laptop unless they confirmed beforehand that they would vote for him.

Spencer, clarifying that he was not an eyewitness himself, said that he filed the violation “at the behest of the victims.” Many had approached him about Owens, Spencer said, which he attributes in part to Owens’ unflattering remarks about Spencer in a mass e-mail to freshmen earlier that week.

The NEC ultimately ruled the verbal evidence against Owens relevant to his presidential campaign and disqualified him from the race. Because he came in third place anyway, his disqualification is immaterial.

However, after the announcement of the ruling, Owens called Spencer’s case against him a “witch hunt” and “conspiracy,” and that he feels that his ethnicity as black was “a factor” in the NEC’s decision.

Owens said that he organized a march to the hearing from his home dormitory, Dubois College House.

NEC Vice Chairman for Elections and College junior Ben Kruger said there were no racial biases in their deliberation, and that “it’s very unfortunate” that concerns over possible racism have arisen.

Owens also ran for the Undergraduate Assembly and won along with eight other hopefuls. Wharton freshman Nigel Lam, who was also elected to the Class Board as vice president of External Affairs, received the most votes — granting him a seat on the University Council.

Spencer said he “couldn’t be happier” with the rest of the members on the Class Board with him.

“I just hope that I can earn the position over the course of the next year and hopefully the next four years,” he said.

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