Student body president announced for 66th session

Presidential+candidate+Iris+Okere+and+VP+canidate+Sophie+Martins+speak+at+the+first+round+of+debate+on+March+23.+Okere+and+Martins+ran+on+a+Level+Up+campaign%2C+which+had+five+core+values%3A+transparency%2C+civic+engagement%2C+retention%2C+diversity%2C+and+accountability.

Kristy Mace

Presidential candidate Iris Okere and VP canidate Sophie Martins speak at the first round of debate on March 23. Okere and Martins ran on a “Level Up” campaign, which had five core values: transparency, civic engagement, retention, diversity, and accountability.

Iris Okere and Sophie Martins will be the next student body president and vice president. 

Okere, SGA’s current Diversity Empowerment and Inclusion Committee chair, and Martins, advocacy coordinator for Student Engagement, Advocacy and Leadership, will begin transitioning into the role of president and vice president almost immediately. 

Okere and Martins won by a large portion, with 47.6% of the votes, 910 students — with opposing candidates each getting about half of that.

Noah Carter and Jonathan Stanger secured 26.2% of the votes, 500 students, while Zane Berry and Nicholas Harmon got 23.5% of the votes, 449 students.

Okere and Martins campaigned on five platforms: transparency, civic engagement, diversity, student retention and accountability. One of their main goals included increasing diversity on campus and in Student Government. 

Last year, 1,008 students voted for presidential candidates, with 554 voting for sole ticket and former president Olivia Gallegos. Gallegos resigned on the first day of the fall semester when former VP Mitchell Adamson took office. 

Later, Adamson stepped down and the former Speaker of the Senate took over the presidential role, where he resides now.