By Mariah McCloskey<\/b>
\n<\/b>Staff Writer<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n
Jacob Abel and Efrain Vallejo were elected to represent the School of Diplomacy in the Student Government Association Senate for the 2017-2018 academic year. The two senators-elect were part of the Reform Party, who were able to elect 12 out of their 18-candidate ticket. Endorsements from two Diplomacy organizations, The Global Current and the Seton Hall United Nations Association (SHUNA), helped Abel and Vallejo to best their competitors, Gabrielle Goldworm and Colin Kilbourne. <\/span><\/p>\n The official results were announced on the morning of March 30, while unofficial results were announced around 7 p.m. on March 28, the second day of the election. As long as the results were unofficial, they could be challenged for up to 24 hours after the first announcement. <\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI would just like to thank everyone that supported Efrain and I throughout the campaign,\u201d said Abel, an incumbent freshman senator. Vallejo, currently an ad hoc on the Finance Committee, did not respond to requests for comment, but Abel said he and Vallejo would \u201calso like to let all Diplomacy students know that we are here for them if they have any issues or questions.\u201d Their first order of business would be to start \u201cextra office hours and attending club meetings so that Diplomacy students can get to know us,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n Kyla Stewart, a freshman Diplomacy major, said she felt the new Diplomacy senators would \u201cbe more accessible and receptive\u201d to her concerns.<\/span><\/p>\n The executive board was swept by the Simon-Reed ticket. Christina Simon was elected president, Violet Reed as vice president, Michael Roma as treasurer, and Josie Martinez as secretary. <\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI was overjoyed that the student body trusts my team and me to serve them in the best way possible,\u201d said Simon, a sophomore English and Philosophy major.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThe passion and seriousness with which our students took the SGA elections seems a fitting response to recent elections in the US and globally,\u201d Dean Halpin said. She said the passion the candidates had \u201cmakes me excited for a future when our our passionate students will be our leading public servants.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n The election left a few students frustrated with the results, and some had qualms about the ballot itself. \u201cKainoa Spenser had his first name up for half of the election, and no one really knows him as Christian. Everyone knows him as Kainoa,\u201d said Chloe Whitewater, a sophomore Diplomacy major, about the Reform Party\u2019s vice presidential candidate whose first name is Christian. Whitewater said she knew he would have been great, but that most people most likely did not realize exactly who was running.<\/span><\/p>\n Many students were not expecting the results of the election. Emily Beres, a freshman Biology major, said she ended up voting for Amanda Moreira and Marlene Da Cruz as Arts and Sciences senators. She said she had voted for Chris McNeil, a Diplomacy major who was running for vice president. \u201cI know Chris from friends and as a DA,\u201d she said, referring to McNeil\u2019s position as a desk assistant. Other than that, Beres said she \u201cnever really had any interactions\u201d with the other candidates.<\/span><\/p>\n The new executive board members are \u201crevved up to start working on our platform promises, or address any needs of the students,\u201d said Reed, the vice president-elect. Simon said when it comes to student concerns, her team will \u201cwork diligently to ensure that their voices are heard.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Jacob Abel and Efrain Vallejo were elected to represent the School of Diplomacy in the Student Government Association Senate for the 2017-2018 academic year. The two senators-elect were part of the Reform Party, who were able to elect 12 out of their 18-candidate ticket. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3454,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"colormag_page_container_layout":"default_layout","colormag_page_sidebar_layout":"default_layout","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1041,389],"tags":[1060,1061],"class_list":["post-5573","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-april2017","category-diplo-news","tag-diplomacy-senators","tag-reform-party"],"yoast_head":"\n