Student Association Presses for Student Space

by Myles Goldman

The Student Association had its shortest meeting of the year Monday night but found time to pass a comprehensive Student space bill.

The bill titled, "Student Space Campaign Act" passed unanimously in a meeting that only lasted about 40 minutes.  The bill voices support for the student space campaign proposal SA President Ashwin Narla released last week.  http://www.wrgwnews.com/2013/01/student-association-proposes-new.html

"Calling on a firm commitment from The George Washington University Board of Trustees, President and Administration to making Student Space a priority," the bill states, "and laying out in the next semester a timeline for University investment in Student Space," it states.

The SA has spent the last week trying to rally support for the bill.  On Tuesday night SA Senators and members of Narla's Cabinet went dorm storming with a petition urging students to sign and show their support.  On Thursday from 12-2 there will be a rally for the bill in Kogan plaza.  Free food will be served, and the SA is expecting 1600 students will attend.

The SA's goal is to collect 5,000 student signatures on the petition that Narla plans to bring to the Board of Trustees when they meet next week.

Senator Ryan Counihan (SOB-U), the bill's sponsor, says this year's SA is addressing the student space issue more directly with administrators.

"We've played nice [with the Administration] for a year-and-a-half, but at this point we're rethinking our strategy," he said.

At the meeting approximately 14 Senators were absent, most likely due to rush week for fraternities and class conflicts.  Additionally, the SA invited student organization leaders to attend the meeting to talk about student space and tried to entice them with free food but it appeared that very few organization leaders attended.

In other news from the meeting it was announced that Student Association elections will likely be held the first week after spring break.  The JEC will make the final decision in the next week or two.

Narla Wins Presidential Election in Run Off

For the second consecutive year the race for Student Association President came down to a runoff between two candidates.The cheering sections for candidates John Bennett and Ashwin Narla enthusiastically chanted their candidates' name back-and-forth at each other across Funger Hall lecture room 103 minutes before the results were announced.

After 45 minutes of waiting, Joint Elections Committee Chair Phil Gardner announced the results. Ashwin Narla will be the next and 37th Student Association President at The George Washington University.

Narla won the race 53 percent to SA Finance Chair Bennett's 47 percent in a runoff election that broke a University record for voter participation with 4,385 students voting. The election took place online between Wednesday at 9 a.m. to Thursday at 9 p.m.

Narla appeared stunned and a little emotional as supporters rallied around him, hugged him, and chanted his name as soon as the results were announced.

"I'm just really overwhelmed. It feels great," Narla told WRGW. "I had great grassroots support. If I didn't have friends I wouldn't be here," he said.

John Bennett appeared disappointed but gracious in the aftermath of the results. Narla and him walked towards each other following the announcement and met at the center of the room shaking hands and trading a few words before returning to their supporters. Bennet told WRGW in a live interview following the results how much he appreciated all of his supporters.

"I just feel lousy that I wasn't able to follow-through for them," Bennett commented. "I kind of feel guilty I don't have something a little more concrete to share with them," he said.

Narla will be succeeding junior John Richardson as SA President. Richardson was elected to be a governor on the Marvin Center Governing Board in last week's regularly scheduled elections. Narla will also be the third consecutive SA President from the Sigma Chi Fraternity. He follows in the footsteps of Jason Lifton last year and Richardson this year.

Narla won a race that originally had five candidates. In last weeks regularly scheduled race, Narla received 34% of the vote compared to Bennett's 36%. However, in order to avoid the runoff one of the candidates needed to receive at least 40% of the vote.

Narla will immediately begin meeting with administrators in the days and weeks ahead along with Executive Vice President-Elect Abby Bergren who won last week. They said they're ready to get started on student issues ranging from student space to campus safety.

"I'm not going to be resting too much because there is still a lot of work to be done," Narla said.

SA Runoff Election Interviews

Ashwin Narla Interview

GW SA Election Runoff Ashwin Narla Interview by Wrgw_News on Mixcloud

John Bennett Interview

GW SA Election Runoff John Bennett Interview by Wrgw_News on Mixcloud

Audio of the Announcement of the Presidential Winner and Reaction from the Crowd

GW SA Election Runoff Crowd Reaction to Ashwin's Win by Wrgw_News on Mixcloud

Interview with Markus Batchelor

GW SA Election Runoff Markus Batchelor Interview by Wrgw_News on Mixcloud

WRGW News at 6: SA Election Runoff Special - February 29, 2012

WRGW News SA Runoff Special 2/29 by Wrgw_News on Mixcloud

SA Runoff Voting Open, Candidates to Appear on WRGW

Students can vote for SA President in a runoff between John Bennett and Ashwin Narla today and Thursday.

The two remaining candidates face off after finishing first and second in the general election race for president separated by just 130 votes. Bennett received 1,748 votes (36%), Narla 1,618 (34%), neither crossing the 40% benchmark for locking up the nomination. Bennett and Narla also spent the most money of the five presidential candidates on their campaigns: $975 and $920, respectively, according to the candidates.

Both candidates are juniors.

Bennett comes from the SA, serving most recently as chair of the senate finance committee responsible for doling out funds to student organizations. Narla has not worked in the SA. He served on Colonial Cabinet, led an Alternative Breaks trip to New Orleans and worked for GW University Hallmark Events as a summer assistant.

Tune into the WRGW News at 6 tonight to hear from Narla and Bennett at www.gwradio.com and check back for our live election results coverage Thursday at 9 pm.

Bergren Next EVP, President To Be Decided By Runoff

Hundreds gathered in SMPA basement lecture hall tonight to hear the results of the 2012 Student Association Election. With 45 percent of the vote, junior Abby Bergren will be the next executive vice president. The next president will be decided by a runoff vote between juniors Ashwin Narla and John Bennett.

Joint Elections Committee Chair Phil Gardner took the podium at 9:50 p.m. to announce the winners of the general election. After a few moments of thank yous to all those who participated, Gardner announced the winners to the impatient crowd (full list below).

Executive Vice President-elect Bergren's camp met her with hugs and kisses after her victory was announced. Bergren said she's looking forward to starting the job tomorrow in a post-victory interview with WRGW News.

Only 130 votes separated presidential candidates Bennett (1748) and Narla (1618). The two have a long week ahead of them which will culminate in a runoff election scheduled for Feb. 29 to March 1.

JEC Chair Gardner announced that the 2012 election had the highest voter turnout in recent history with 4,806 students casting ballots. Gardner also announced that a new initiative, which bans smoking within 25 feet of building entrances, passed with 67% supporting the plan.

This year's results venue--a small, tucked away lecture hall in the basement of the SMPA building--was the object of scrutiny by those who attended the event. The poorly ventilated room heated up as hundreds of warm bodies packed together. The subterranean "dead zone"proved to be a texter's, tweeter's and radio broadcaster's worst nightmare.

Stay tuned for audio including reactions from Executive Vice President-Elect Bergren, Narla, and Bennett. WRGW also interviewed Student Association President John Richardson regarding the next steps he will take in order to ensure a smooth transition into the next administration.

Full winners list:

Marvin Center Governing Board Graduate Governor: Gary Wong

Marvin Center Governing Board Undergraduate Governors: John Richardson, Jordan Hill, Ian Ceccarelli, Galen Petruso

SEAS Undergraduate Senator: Neil Forquer

School of Business Graduate Senators: Greg Viola, Shashwat Gautam

School of Business Undergraduate Senators: Evan Kline and Ryan Counihan

Elliott School Graduate Senator: Jonathan Kirk

Elliott School Undergraduate Senators: Alicia Rose, Michael Morgan, Ross Rattanasena

CCAS Undergraduate Senators: Markus Batchelor, Daniel Egel-Weiss, Ian Shetron, Omeed Firouzi, Nick Gumas, Anthony Bucci III

Undergraduate Senators at Large: Elizabeth Kennedy, Hugo Scheckter

SA Results Coverage

2012 Student Media SA Debate

Miss last night's SA EVP and President debate? Replay the WRGW live stream below:

2012 Student Association - Student Media Debate by Wrgw_News on Mixcloud

You can find out more about the candidates here.

And vote for your favorite here on Wednesday or Thursday.

SA EVP Ted Costigan Talks 2012 SA Election

SA EVP Ted Costigan 2012 Election Special Interview by Wrgw_News on Mixcloud

Last-Minute Campaigning for SA Election in Full Swing

Bryce Jarvis campaigns for EVP candidate Aria Varasteh

With the polls officially open, candidates in the Student Association election are making a last-minute push for votes the old-fashioned way: on foot.

Limited to within the relatively small confines of the "campaigning zone," roughly comprising of the 2100 block of H St and Kogan Plaza, candidates and their supporters are advocating for their respective camps via face-to-face interactions and palmcards.

Ted Costigan, candidate for EVP (full disclosure: Costigan is a member of the WRGW Talk department), was stationed outside Lisner auditorium in a grey campaign t-shirt.  Visibly tired, he told WRGW News around 4pm that his campaign day had begun at 7:30 that morning.  After briefly speaking to a graduate student and informing her that she was indeed able to vote in the election, Costigan expressed measured optimism about his efforts, noting that "getting the word out" was the best option available to him and his handful of supporters scattered throughout the zone.