Associated Students of Portland State announced their election results today at the Simon Benson House at 12:30 p.m.
This year’s student government president will be Leila Forbes and vice president will be Kaitlyn Verret, both from Unite PSU.
“This has probably been the most hardest and challenging month of my life,” Forbes said. “The fact that we won really validates the struggle we put into this and all the turmoil that happens alongside elections. I’m totally amazed we won by four votes. Almost disbelief, but there’s so much excitement.”
Voting began on April 11 and polls closed on April 29. With the original goal of 3000, 1401 students voted overall.
“I think that there obviously needs to be more turnout to at least 10 percent,” presidential candidate for ASPSU Trevor Jacobson said prior to the announcements. “If you look across the nation, it is common for it to be 2 to 4 percent across the nation so we’re not entirely out of that range of what’s normally happening, but we really need to strive for a more wider student involvement.”
Student voter turnout was a big focus this year, according to student government and Greek organization adviser, Candace Avalos.
“I am A-OK with [the turnout],” Avalos said. “Two years ago when I first started our highest was 1484; I was aiming for at least 1484 so to come pretty close, I’m pretty happy about that.”
This year students voted for the Smith 2020 Referendum, a proposal to renovate the current Smith Memorial Student Union. 45 percent voted yes and 55 percent voted no. The referendum included three building options. For those who voted for “yes”, option A had 45 percent of the vote, option B had 44 percent and option C had 40 percent.
The following is a list of the remaining positions elected. For the senate, only 14 out of the 16 won due to ties in voting.
Senate:
Kaitlin Hoback
Salih Mahmood
Mustafa Almuzel
Cheryn Trapp
Jaclyn Humphry
Emily Korte
Zia Laboff
Kimberly Ponce
Josie Claus
Write-ins for senate:
Alex Herrera
Anneka Henry
Ahmed Qadri
Rawand Rasheed
Yanyi Li
SFC:
Xavier Coleman
Patrick Staton
Sulakha Hassan
Betheleham Daniel
Write-ins for SFC:
Mahamadou Sissoko
Andy Mayer
Jemila Mohamed
Buckle up kids. These two are grade-A nutjobs who believe the world is out to get whoever the #RegressiveLeft dubs ‘oppressed’ this week.
How’s that petition going bud?
YouKnow I think you want me. TobiasWhately has nothing to do with MY petition. You owe that person an apology but you won’t.
My bad – Tobias is the name of someone who has been spreading that petition around for you. I’m very sorry for my error.
So how’s your petition?
What petition?
Can we get a breakdown of how many votes each candidate received?
I can provide that:
Liela Forbes / Kaitlyn Verret (Unite PSU): 414 votes (29.7%)
Trevor Jacobson / Cassidy Hines (SFBPSU): 410 votes (29.5%)
Zach Brill / Olesya Prokhorova (VOSS): 302 votes (21.7%)
Abstain (No vote on this): 246 votes (17.7%)
Write-ins: 18 votes (1.3%)
Total votes: 1391
What a sad news. Regressive mob in control again.
Last time I covered a student election it seemed like pretty much all of the slates were radical regressives. Was there any difference this time around?
Somehow I doubt “wider student involvement” would be an issue if those four votes were for Student For A Better PSU…
This is appalling. Both the ‘elected officials’ hold authoritarian views, shut out the press, and are affiliated with self-proclaimed communists and members of the domestic terrorist group, Black Li(v)es Matter. Their election isn’t a surprise since this college bends over backwards for whiners and race-baiters. This is just shameful. As for the turnout of votes, it’s obvious students don’t see the use of voting in a college that doesn’t seem to care for your views if your white or Asian. Thankfully, I am a senior and won’t have to be on this campus any longer to witness the “equality” these two execute in the coming terms.
It’s rich to throw around the word “authoritarian” about people who have gotten rape and death threats for protesting the campaign of an authoritarian presidential candidate.
Oh hey Forbes,
Where’s your evidence?
Here’s a friendly reminder on who is now elected:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3rNCfKbCy8
Forbes and Verret are the worst kinds of people to be in public positions. They’re also cronies with other cancerous regressive leftist groups on campus such as the PSUSU who think it’s ok to shut down other people who don’t jive with their ideological agenda.
I just hope people continue doing what they do in spite of these two clowns (Verret looking like a literal one).
Please sign & share the petition to expel PSU VP Verret & the other violent protestors. They have physically assaulted journalists/students and threatened violence on multiple occasions. Here is an additional video of President Fobes & VP Verret verbally threatening & physically assaulting a journalist. Portland State University deserves better.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3rNCfKbCy8
https://www.change.org/p/wim-wiewel-portland-state-university-expel-violent-protestors-that-mobbed-students-for-trump-meeting
This is excellent news! Those two will be the figureheads for the student body for an entire year! Continual speeches and public appearances for the world to see! Their increased public profiles will drive more traffic to the videos of them on my channel! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3rNCfKbCy8