Results:
Hanna Kurdziel – SU President Prisha Rao – Junior BSAC
Zarif Rahman – SU Vice President JK Rajjo – Public Relations
Kate Estevez – Treasurer Farah Haq – Senior SLT
Julia Jinu – Secretary David Babayev – Junior SLT
Lauren Jun – Club Liaison Julia Maciejak – Senior Class President
Audrey Chou – Senior BSAC Nameera Khan – Junior Class President
Hellen Oliveira – Sophmen Class President
After a uniquely challenging all-virtual campaign season, the Student Union (SU) released the voting ballots for the SU general elections. On May 7 and 8, Harrisites cast their ballots and received notice of the results for the 2021-2022 school year’s SU Board on May 14.
The process for the 2020-2021 SU elections, similar to the 2019-2020 elections, was modified to fit a virtual environment. Instead of the usual monetary budget, campaign posters, and flyers, candidates were limited to only social media and email. In order to be considered as a candidate, students had to collect a set number of signatures from freshman, sophomores, and juniors to prove their ability to garner support from their peers. As election season rolled around, positions with three or more candidates underwent primary elections to narrow each role down to two candidates.
Jocelyn Wang, a primary candidate for Club Liaison said that, despite not winning, “My experience with campaigning has inspired me to continue to facilitate change outside of the SU board by continuing to stay involved through Grade Leaders and class Senate. I hope to continue with them next year as well.”
SU Treasurer-elect Kate Estevez said, “Although networking online is a bit impersonal and I would definitely rather make the connections in person, I do believe that it was my online connections that truly led me to winning this position.” Senior Class President-elect Julia Maciejak shared a similar sentiment, saying “social media definitely made campaigning a lot easier, but I missed seeing the campaign posters hanging up in the hallway.”
Whilst the online environment enhanced outreach, the exhilarating ambiance of election season has been lost, especially for those without social media. However, despite the obvious need for a digital election this year, some of its successes may be incorporated for years to come.
David Babayev, the Junior SLT-elect, shared how campaigning “was both fun and stressful. Although there was a lot of work to do such as coming up with ideas, making the posts, and doing outreach, some of the aspects of campaigning were incredibly fun.” Many candidates had similar experiences and expressed how they enjoyed the connections they made with fellow Harrisities and the support they saw from candidate to candidate.
“Thank you for trusting me, for voting for me, and for believing in my vision for the school next year. You will see my goals and ideas implemented and I won’t let you down,” Kate said. Club Liaison-elect Lauren Jun also assured Harrisites that she would take on her new position wholeheartedly. “I am absolutely available to help with any questions or concerns, related to clubs or otherwise,” Lauren said.
As the end of the school year approaches, both the administration and students can look forward to an in-person 2021-2022 school year with a newly elected SU.
Image from Pixabay
