Posters with catchy slogans will begin to appear on campus this week. Election campaigns for the Associated Students of Southern Oregon University begin Monday.
This year, the candidates for president and vice president, Hassan Harris and Amanda Stucke, are running unopposed.
Even though Harris and Stucke are running unopposed, that doesn’t mean they automatically become president and vice president. The pair still needs to earn 1 percent of the vote, equivalent to 65 students. If they are unable to get 65 votes, there will be a run-off election.
The duo said they plan on running the same campaign.
“Don’t think we’re going to rest. We still have people to reach,” Stucke said. “We need to show students why they should trust us as leaders.”
Harris is a postbaccalaureate student and Stucke is a sophomore at SOU. Both have been involved in ASSOU in the past. Harris is a former senator and Stucke was this year’s Executive Director of Communications and Web Management until she announced her candidacy for vice president.
“If you would’ve asked me last year, I would’ve said no,” Stucke said. “I hope I’ve proved myself in that way and I hope to do so in a greater capacity.”
As former members of ASSOU, Harris and Stucke are the first people to admit changes need to be made within student government.
“I think being in the midst of it will help us stay out of [the drama],” Stucke said. “There isn’t time or room to be involved in that.”
“We’re building bridges, not walls,” Harris said. “We’re setting the bar high, not just settling.”
Campaigning season runs through April 29. Elections will take place the week of May 2 through 4.
More information about the elections can be found by visiting assou.net.