Hail to the New Chief

After a long and heated campaign, the Colgate student body elected Amy Dudley and Preston Burnes as President and Vice President of the Student Government Association. “I would like to greatly thank and commend my campaign staff for their efforts throughout the campaign,” SGA President-elect Dudley said. The victory was hard-fought as Dudley and Burnes received the support of 57% of students who voted. Justin McLeod and Dave Odenath provided strong competition, resulting in a very close election. “I would like to commend Justin and Dave, as well as their campaign staff for running a tremendous campaign themselves,” Dudley said.Both sides launched aggressive campaigns with posters, Coop sheets and a formal debate. Both campaigns had campaign managers and staff that devoted numerous hours planning and advertising. The campaign was especially challenging for Dudley who was abroad and unable to participate fully. “Being away from campus was incredibly difficult for me since campaign time is always so exciting,” she said. “We certainly weren’t happy with how both campaigns resorted to becoming so negative,” Burnes said. “[I hope that] students won’t be turned off by the way the campaigns were run and will instead have a positive attitude towards the Student Government.”Participation is much higher than it has been in previous years. According to the SGA Election Commissioners Clifford G. Orsher and Mary Acoymo, 1,556 students voted in the Presidential election this year. “The large turnout may be due to hot issues circulating, especially that of the Greek acquisition,” Acoymo said. With the New Residential Education plan, which includes the acquisition of Greek houses, many students have taken a strong stand.The elevated election turnout may reflect the Colgate student body’s heightened interest in Colgate politics and the decisions of the Administration. Even outside of the Student Government, there have been many politically motivated students. In a show of protest, fraternities placed signs in front of their houses in protest of the new policies. The acquisition of the Greek houses will be one of the many issues the Student Government will face this coming year. “This is a unique time in Colgate history and we have especially tumultuous decisions ahead,” Burnes said. The intensity of the election is perhaps reflective of the many Colgate faces in the near future. Both Dudley and Burnes believe they are prepared for the challenge. “I’d like to express my excitement about what lies ahead as SGA President for the coming year,” Dudley said.