Hysen wins SGA election

Junior Eric Hysen has been declared the winner of the SGA presidential election over sophomore Will Bucher, SGA Parliamentarian Christie Lin announced today. Hysen currently serves as SGA chief of staff under President Barun Aryal. Sophomore Molly Martinez was elected vice president.

Students voted during their English periods on Tuesday and Wednesday, using Blair's secure online voting system.

Lin said that the election was Blair's most hotly contested in years. "It was exciting to have an election with two candidates who are so seriously focused on the SGA," she said, "especially now that SGA is given so many opportunities to represent the student voice." Aryal ran uncontested in 2005, and his predecessor, current Student Member of the Board Sebastian Johnson, had won in a landslide as a sophomore in 2004.

Hysen, who is also a member of Silver Chips Online's technical staff, was excited about his victory. He said that his first act as president would be to lobby the administration to consider his temporary ID plan. "I plan to walk up to [Principal Phillip] Gainous and mention it at the very next [Instructional Leadership Team] meeting," he said. The plan, which had been a cornerstone of his campaign, would allow students to receive up to three temporary ID stickers before being charged for a replacement ID card. Reform of the ID policy had been a key issue during the campaign season, with both candidates mentioning their views on the policy during Monday's Elections Convention.

Hysen began his SGA career as a freshman, serving as an MCR delegate in the 2003-2004 school year. Before Aryal took office, Hysen was Parliamentarian under former President Sebastian Johnson, from 2004-2005. During this time, he chaired the Constitutional Review Committee, which Johnson had commissioned for the purpose of writing the SGA constitution that is currently in effect.

Bucher said he intends to seek office next year. His campaign drew upon what he saw as students' resentment towards ineffective SGA policies. He had previously served as 2008 Class Vice President and was an Associate Justice on the SGA Review Board before the Board's dissolution in January 2006.

The electronic voting system ran flawlessly, said Lin, whose duties as Parliamentarian include coordinating and supervising elections. "The computers are extremely efficient; everything ran as it should," she said. The system, in which students voted using laptops connected to a secure page on Blair's server, had met with computer problems during last year's elections.

SGA sponsor Rondai Ravilious felt that the election met its goal of giving students an opportunity to express their views on school issues. "This year's elections were very competitive. The two candidates obviously care very much, and it's great to see the student voice being represented," she said. Ravilious feels that the elections were conducted smoothly and fairly. "Christie has done an excellent job coordinating this election," she said. "It's been run so efficiently and, for the most part, without a hitch."

Hysen will take office after Aryal's term ends on June 1, as mandated by the SGA constitution.

Following is a list of all election results, by office: