This article was first published in June 2004. It is from the sixth edition of Volume 20 of The Classic. Since this week, THHS hosted its annual Student Union Executive Board elections, we decided to look into our archives to see what coverage of previous elections looked like. This article, from twenty years ago, gives a glimpse into the elections of years past and also shows the work of Christopher Amanna. When he wrote this, Mr. Amanna was a news staff writer for The Classic. He became Managing Editor the following year and Editor-in-Chief the year after that. Twenty years later, Mr. Amanna is a Latin teacher at THHS.
Throughout the year, The Classic will be celebrating the paper’s fortieth anniversary by republishing articles that have never appeared online. See the original article below.
Controversy is no match for successful SU Elections
Enthusiasm and controversy marked this year’s Student Union Executive board elections, which culminated with a May 26 vote and a voter turnout of approximately 70 percent.
The aforementioned controversy stemmed from a candidate in a schoolwide position allegedly spreading false rumors about another candidate’s record. Negative campaigning goes against election policy and the student apologized. Many students, however, did not realize that malignant rumors were being sparked by a candidate. “I didn’t really know what [Coordinator of Student Affairs] Mr. Stonehill was talking about when he made an announcement during lunch regarding the scandal,” said sophomore Ana-Maria Bonner. “I don’t think too many students will care.”
Despite the incident, Mr. Stonehill was satisfied with the course of the election season, “I was very pleased with people’s interactions [in the election]. A lot of students got into it,” he remarked. Candidates campaigned fervently, creating inventive posters and slogans and going so far as to use music during the May 19 debates as did Vice President-elect Sharon Lim.
Mr. Stonehill also pointed out that few current SU Executive Board members were reelected because, “students like change. It is difficult to win as an incumbent.” Their losses should not be viewed as a reflection of the students’ accomplishments in student government. “We had a very strong board this year and its members should be congratulated [for doing outstanding jobs this year in planning more events for their grades and working with great enthusiasm].”
Voter interest continued even after the results were announced, while discussions about surprise victories and upsetting losses carried on several days.
Regardless of who will be filling the student-run administrative seats, Mr. Stonehill is looking forward to a “strong active government” next year. Junior VP-elect Sangsoo Kim, optimistic about next year’s board said, “I plan to seek the advice of former board members and get feedback from next year’s senators in order to make next year as great as possible.
