Possible violation delays SGA presidential results
By Danny Gillham
Staff Reporter

The Student Government Association presidential race is still undetermined.

Elections and Regulations Chairman Nick James said a campaign violation has been filed, but he declined to comment further.

“All I will say is a violation has been filed, and we will deal with it in the morning,” said James, a junior political science major.

Presidential candidate Jay Zeidman said he is fed up with the situation.

“I don’t know what’s going on,” said Zeidman, a political science and economics major. “Nick James would not tell me anything. Most of the candidates have tried to run an ethical campaign. I’m very frustrated.”

Zeidman said he was told a candidate was knocking on residential doors Tuesday. According to TCU’s election code, campaigning on election day is illegal.

Blake Eason, also a presidential candidate, declined to comment on the phone, but said in an e-mail that communication has been broken and scattered.

“At this time, the details of the violations have not been clearly communicated to me,” said Eason, a junior finance major. “Without knowledge of what the violations are, there is no way that any candidate can move forward with their campaign.”

Eason won an appeal last week, after receiving a campaign violation for announcing his presidential candidacy at an SGA meeting after stepping down as parliamentarian Oct. 14.

Jason Ruth, a presidential candidate, said he was also told nothing, and candidate Anthony Oppermann could not be reached for comment.

James said an estimated 2,200 students voted this year.

“At 8,000 students, that is 27.5 percent,” James said. “I challenge any school to show they had nearly 30 percent of their campus vote. You can probably count them on one hand.”

Last year, 1,123 students voted.

In other races, Megan Brown was elected vice president of House, and David Watson was elected treasurer. James declined to give the margin of victory, only saying both won by a considerable margin.

Both Brown and Watson said they were not told their margin of victory.

Watson, a sophomore entrepreneurial management major, said he looks forward to learning all he can from current SGA Treasurer Chris Mattingly.

“I want to get a head start for next semester,” Watson said. “At the same time, I want finish my term as permanent improvements chairman strong and continue to make positive changes to this campus.”

Brown, a sophomore political science major, said she is excited but won’t be satisfied until she knows who the president will be.

Two positions ran unopposed in this year’s elections.

Sebastian Moleski will take the office as vice president of Programming Council. Moleski, a sophomore international economics major, is currently the director of programming and development.

Corrie Lockhart, a sophomore advertising public relations major, will return to SGA as secretary after holding the position for one semester.

SGA adviser Larry Markley said candidates usually do not run unopposed.

He said PC has had a couple of years where the number of returning members have been down.