Sophomore Devontae Torriente will serve as the next Student Government president, winning 60.5 percent of the total unofficial vote count according to a news release put out by elections commissioner Jamie MacRitchie.
Fellow candidate sophomore Will Mascaro won 17.1 percent of the vote and sophomore Matt Mullin won 16.5 percent.
“I’m beyond grateful for this opportunity, and I’m so overwhelmed by all the support that I’ve gotten throughout this entire process,” Torriente said upon learning of the results.
Mascaro said although elections didn’t go as anticipated, he is thankful for those who supported him throughout the process and believes Torriente will succeed as president.
“Devontae is going to be an incredible president, and I so look forward to working with him,” Mascaro said. “While the election didn’t go the way we had hoped, I feel so lucky to have had the support of so many students. This was a tough election, but I believe that as a Student Government we’ll come together to do right by all students at AU.”
Mullin also said he thinks Torriente will serve the campus well as president. He hopes to continue working with him and other Student Government members in the future.
“I think Devontae’s a great guy, and he’s definitely the person who’s going to lead AU in the right direction to make the campus a better place for every student,” Mullin said. “I’d like to say congratulations to him and thanks to both candidates for running a fun campaign season. I hope to implement some of the things we’ve been discussing throughout the campaign process and to work with student government in the future. You haven’t seen the last of me yet.”
Torriente will be joined by junior Samantha Vervaeke as vice president, sophomore Faith Rokowski as secretary and sophomore Shannon McDermott as comptroller.
According to MacRitchie, this year had the highest turnout of votes casted in the history of Student Government elections, with a total of 2124 votes, approximately 30 percent of undergraduate students. Undergraduate enrollment for fall of 2015 was 7,259 students according to the University’s website.
Samantha Vervaeke elected vice president
Samantha Vervaeke won the vice presidential race with 47.3 percent of the total unofficial vote count. Competitor sophomore Alexis Arnell followed in a close second with 43.0 percent.
Vervaeke expressed gratitude for all of her supporters and said she is looking forward to taking on this new role in the upcoming year.
“I feel so thankful for all the help that I got from my team,” Vervaeke said. “I feel so thankful for everyone that won and everyone that supported me, and I’m just so excited to get to work.”
Shannon McDermott elected comptroller
Shannon McDermott won the comptroller race with 60.2 percent of the unofficial votes. Sophomore Alexandra Mosenson followed with 33.3 percent.
“I think if you could put a whole bunch of exclamation points into one sentence, that’s how I feel right now,” McDermott said. “I’m just so ecstatic and happy. I feel so honored that I have so much support from wonderful people. Alex Mosenson was a wonderful competitor, and she’s a great girl, and I’m just really honored to be here.”
Faith Rokowski elected secretary
Faith Rokowski won the secretary race with 55.0 percent of the vote with opponent Martin Valderruten receiving 39.8 percent.
Rokowski currently serves as current SG President Sasha Gilthorpe’s chief of staff, and tears rolled down her face following the announcement of her new position. Rokowski praised Valderruten and the work he has done during his term as secretary.
“I literally can not even,” Rokowski said. “It’s so hard processing it right now. Martin ran such an incredible campaign. He was the one who inspired me to run in the first place, so it’s a little bittersweet.”
Referendums on the ballot
Although the first two referendums failed which would have eliminated class councils and removed the ability of a school council president from providing their consent to the appointment of a senator, a referendum in favor of a tuition freeze passed with 85.6 percent of the unofficial votes.
