It took two elections and a number of hearings, but undergraduates finally elected the five vice presidents who will help lead the Duke Student Government next year.
In yesterday's runoff election for three of the spots, Trinity sophomore Randy Fink defeated Trinity sophomore Daleep Singh to gain the post of executive vice president; Trinity sophomore Takcus Nesbit defeated Trinity sophomore Husein Cumber to become vice president for student affairs; and Trinity junior LaRonda Peterson defeated Trinity freshman Nicole Kelly in the race for vice president for community interaction.
Joining the three victors are Trinity sophomores Lauren Elsner, vice president for academic affairs-elect, and Jason Goode, vice president for facilities and athletics-elect, who won in last week's original election. Trinity junior and DSG president-elect Peggy Cross, who won her race yesterday, will round out the government's executive council.
Fink, who received 51.7 percent of the vote, stressed the importance of the 40.6 percent voter turnout.
"I think this is a turning point and that the Duke students have given us a mandate," he said. "It's really important that the administration realize that half the students are sending a message that they better start listening up. This is a powerful time."
Other candidates said they were happy to witness the end of a grueling campaign. "On the whole, I'm just relieved it's over and that our campaign was well run," said Peterson, who, in the closest race of the day, received 51 percent of the vote. "There wasn't as much negative campaigning as in the other races," she said from her home in Charleston, S.C.
Indeed, as Fink pointed out, DSG's image may suffer from the controversial week of complaints and hearings. "We're going to have an image problem... but with the people we're bringing into DSG, that image problem will be swept under the rug," he said.
Nesbit agreed, saying that undergraduates put their faith in the future of student government Thursday. "I really think [voters] said `We want quality leaders who will get the job done,'" he said. "Forty-one percent [voter turnout] is very good, especially the day before spring break. Fortunately, the student body came out and did the right thing."
Nesbit came away with the vice-presidential runoffs' largest victory margin, garnering 55.6 percent of the vote.
Some of the candidates who were not so fortunate spoke about the relative worth of the process. "It was definitely a learning process. I did learn a lot about myself," Singh said.
Kelly said she agreed. "I feel pretty pleased that as a freshman, I got that many votes. I really had a great experience running," she said. Kelly will chair the University Union Interaction Committee next year and said she hopes to work with Peterson on a few projects.
Singh and Cumber also expressed a desire to continue serving the community, and all three congratulated their opponents. Singh, whose campaign was perhaps the most bitterly fought, was nevertheless upbeat.
"It's not something I'm proud of. I don't think anyone could be proud of this race," he said. "But I do wish Randy luck. I wish everybody luck for DSG next year."
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