Run-offs in tied elections finally generate two winners

Student government elections finally came to a close last night when the Nominations and Elections Committee announced the results of two run-off elections. College sophomore Billy Moore won the race for rising junior class president with 484 votes, while opponent and Engineering sophomore Ahsim Khan received 434 votes. With 141 votes, UA incumbent and Wharton junior James Ku will continue to serve as Wharton representative for another year. His challenger, Wharton freshman John Hawkins, received 124 votes. Regular elections to fill Undergraduate Assembly and class boards positions ended April 3. The NEC determined that run-offs were necessary when the races for junior class president and Undergraduate Assembly Wharton representative resulted in ties. Since no charges of unfair campaigning were filed, and no candidates turned in spending forms late at the conclusion of the run-offs, the NEC did not hold a Fair Practices Code hearing. The body announced results via e-mail. "When we went to the results meeting a week ago, I didn't know what to expect, and I certainly didn't expect there to be a tie," Moore said. "It's just a relief," he added. "I'm just really looking forward to being able to work to benefit our class next year, and I'm also looking forward to working on the UA." Ku also expressed his enthusiasm about participating in the UA in the fall. "It took a little longer than I would have liked to get back on," he said. "[But] it's great to be back on. This year was terrific in terms of how much we got done, both individually and as a group. I really look forward to next year." Ku mentioned his surprise at the number of students who voted during run-offs. "I didn't expect a lot of people to vote in the run-off, but it seemed like a lot more than I expected," he said. NEC Vice Chairwoman of Elections Anne Hankey thought more undergraduates could have participated in voting for Wharton representative. "I was kind of disappointed that not that many people voted," she said. "I think the candidates, as well as the NEC, could have done a better job doing PR" for the run-off elections. However, Hankey said she was pleased about the voter turn-out in the junior class presidential race. "Normally, people are uninterested after the whole election, [but] over 800 people voted [for junior class president], which is really awesome," she said.