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westerngazette.ca FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2017 • WESTERN UNIVERSITY’S STUDENT NEWSPAPER • VOLUME 110, ELECTIONS ISSUE olives on pizzaw since 1906

TEAM TOBI TAKES THE USC PRESIDENCY PG2

VOTER TURNOUT UP 3.9 PER CENT FROM LAST YEAR PG3

TRAITS OF A WINNING CANDIDATE PG4

TOBI ON TOP TEAM TOBI TAKES THE USC PRESIDENCY

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VOTER TURNOUT UP 3.9 PER CENT FROM LAST YEAR

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TRAITS OF A WINNING CANDIDATE

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MOSES MONTERROZA GAZETTE

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MOSES MONTERROZA GAZETTE

Team Tobi captured 49 per cent Runners-up Team DiBrina of the vote received 37.8 per cent and Team Jan/Mohamad achieves 12.9 per cent RITA RAHMATI NEWS EDITOR AMY O’KRUK FEATURES & GRAPHICS EDITOR @NewsAtGazette

NATALIE TREFFRY GAZETTE

2017 USC Elections Results 12.9% Team Tobi: 4,261 votes

49.3%

Team DiBrina: 3,265 votes

37.8% Team Jan/Mohammad: 1,118 votes

JORDAN MCGAVIN GAZETTE

In a heated election, students have elected Team Tobi as the next president/vice-president of the University Students’ Council.

Team Tobi’s presidential candidate Tobi Solebo and vice-presidential candidate Landon Tulk won with 4,261 votes, beating second-place slate Team DiBrina, who finished with 3,265 votes and third place slate, Team Jan/Mohammad who received 1,118 votes.

Decked in red, the winning slate’s campaign team and friends were ecstatic upon hearing the news as the room erupted in a cheer.

“Tobi! Tobi! Tobi!” Could be heard chanted throughout The Spoke as they celebrated their victory.

“People believed in what we had to say,” Solebo said. “We promoted something that the public got excited and optimistic about, and I think that’s the most exciting part of it.”

Landon Tulk, Solebo’s running mate, also expressed his happiness and gratitude for the win.

“We’re overwhelmed,” Tulk said.

“This is incredible. We knew we were underdogs going into this and we kept pushing, and it may have been that mentality that pushed us over the top.”

The other slates congratulated Team Tobi on their win and wished them luck in the future.

“Tobi and Landon are two extremely deserving candidates,” said Mohammad Hussain of Team Jan/ Mohammad. “I think it’s great that we had three different slates to bring something to the table so that more students could get what they wanted.”

This is incredible.

We knew we were underdogs going into this and we kept pushing, and it may have been that mentality that pushed us over the top.

LANDON TULK

USC VICE PRESIDENT-ELECT Harry Orbach Miller of Team DiBrina also had positive sentiments about Team Tobi’s victory.

“We wish [Team Tobi] the best of luck,” said Orbach Miller. “They ran a great campaign. And hopefully, it all works out well for them.”

As a personal friend of Team Tobi’s, Anooshae Janmohammad congratulated the duo and reflected upon her own experience throughout the campaign.

“Honestly it was an incredible experience. I’m so glad that I went out and did it,” said Janmohammad.

“I learned a lot and I’m probably never going to get this experience again.”

Voter turnout was up from last year at a 27.9 per cent turnout rate. Of 32,796 eligible students, 9,165 voted — a 3.8 per cent increase from last year.

With files from Sabrina Fracassi, Connor Malbeuf, Connor Clark, Grace To and Drishti Kataria.

• www.westerngazette.ca

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2017 • 3

elections

Team DiBrina and Team Jan/Mohammad runners-up

Council election results GRACE TO NEWS EDITOR @GRACE_KTO

Left: Harry Orbach Miller (left) and David DiBrina (right) of Team DiBrina Right: Anooshae Janmohammad (left) and Mohammad Hussain (right) of Team Jan/Mohammad

RITA RAHMATI NEWS EDITOR @RITARAHMATI The mood at the Spoke was mixed as Team Tobi supporters erupted in cheer over the results of the University Students’ Council election and supporters of the runners-up were left defeated. Team Tobi may have won the University Students’ Council election, but they were up against some tough competition throughout the campaign period.

“Honestly, I feel really, really good,” said Team DiBrina presidential candidate David DiBrina immediately after the results were announced. “We’re ready to get going on other things. We have so

much stuff to still do within the USC and improve it for students and that’s what we’re going to focus on now.”

Anooshae Janmohammad reflected upon the positive experience of vying for the USC presidency.

“I’m so glad that I went out and did it. I learned a lot and I’m probably never going to get this experience again,” Janmohammad said.

Friends and family members of the candidates in attendance were at the election night results event at The Spoke.

“She worked hard during this whole month and I was able to see all the strength she had and what she can do,” said Janmohammad’s mom, Ashrafunissa. “I think I have

enjoyed this month and I’ve seen the best of her.”

After the results were announced Team DiBrina’s campaign team spoke highly of the campaign as a whole.

“Honestly, it was an incredible experience and I’m so proud of all the members of our campaign team and all of our volunteers for putting in that much effort as they did into the campaign,” said Vanshika Dhawan, Team DiBrina’s campaign manager.

This election brought about the highest voter turnout in years — 27.9 per cent — a feat which Mohammad Hussain of Team Jan/Mohammad lauded.

“I’m really excited because the

end of the day when you have a voter turnout of 28 per cent, the only person who wins is the student body,” Hussain said immediately after the results were announced.

Both runners-up slates spoke positively of Team Tobi and congratulated them on their victory.

President-elect Tobi Solebo noted the tremendous work his opponents put in.

“They ran a great campaign,” Solebo said. “They pushed us harder than we even imagined being pushed. Those last two weeks were insane and crazy and busy and the only reason we worked as hard as we did was because those two pushed us to do it.”

Voter turnout 27.9 per cent SABRINA FRACASSI NEWS EDITOR @SABFRACASSI Voter turnout for the University Students’ Council presidential election spiked to 27.9 per cent this year.

This is the highest turnout rate in the past three years, jumping 8 per cent since 2014 when only 19.4 per cent of the students came out to vote.

Out of the 32,796 students who were eligible to vote, a total of 9,164 students voted in this year’s election.

Polls closed at 8 p.m. on Wednesday night and the elections governance committee confirmed these numbers soon afterwards.

Voter turnout rates have been climbing over the past couple of years. In 2014 there was a substantial dip in the number of students who came out to vote, with only 19.4 per cent of eligible voters taking the time to vote. However, USC election turnout rates used to be much higher.

In 2012, 36.8 per cent of students came out to vote and in 2009, 39 per cent of the student population voted — this has been the highest turnout rate in the past decade.

Some have attributed the 2014 dip to the second year of the slate system and a relatively bland election. However, turnout rates have been steadily climbing since then, with this year’s rate continuing the trend.

Many of the USC council faculty presidents and councillors have been acclaimed this year: arts and humanities president and councillor, health sciences president, nursing president and councillor, health studies president, kinesiology president, music president and social sciences president and councillors.

Besides the president and vice-president, the only positions with competition in this year’s election were kinesiology councillor, FIMS president, science president and councillors and the London Youth Advisory Council councillor.

All positions for the USC council were announced on Election Results Night at the Spoke on Wednesday night.

ARTS & HUMANITIES President (Acclaimed) Massimo Perruzza Council Representative (Acclaimed) Kate Moran HEALTH SCIENCES President (Acclaimed) Ali Husnain NURSING (ASSOCIATION) President (Acclaimed) Lauren Rogers Council Representative (Acclaimed) — Erika Juhasz HEALTH STUDIES (ASSOCIATION) President (Acclaimed) Amilya Ladak KINESIOLOGY (ASSOCIATION) President (Acclaimed) David McHugh Council Representative Benjamin Abnett FIMS President — Emma Coates MUSIC President (Acclaimed) Kyle Tang SCIENCE President — Danny Chang Council Representative Frank Ye, Ankush Vij, Grace Zhu, Graeden Middel, Rakshith Gangireddy, Julia Gordon, Victoria Barroso SOCIAL SCIENCE President (Acclaimed) Mitchell Pratt Council Representative Adam Khimji, Ayesha Zaman, Jared Forman, Avnashi Dhillon, Calvin Chao, Sophie Delombre, Tom Griffith, Keaton Olsen, Keegan Smart LYAC Council Representative Rebeca Sousa

AMY O’KRUK GAZETTE

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Team Tobi first outsider slate in years RITA RAHMATI NEWS EDITOR @RITARAHMATI What does it take to win the USC presidency? The Gazette looked at the president winners over the past five years to see what traits made them more or less likely to win.

The concept of being an insider or outsider candidate has been used as a marketing tool by candidates in recent elections. This year we have our first USC outsider winners in at least five years with Team Tobi’s victory.

2017–18 TEAM TOBI — OUTSIDER Both Tobi Solebo and Landon Tulk become the president-elect and vice president-elect with little experience in the USC. Solebo and Tulk were sophs and members of the Phi Gamma Delta fraternity, with Solebo serving as an executive member. Solebo was also a member of the Black Students’ Association and worked on the Mental Health Advisory Board. Tulk, a previous Huron student, served on the Huron University College Students’ Council.

President’s faculty: Social Science (BMOS) Year: Third year Colour: Red

LIAM MCINNIS GAZETTE

Team Tobi and Team Jan/Mohammad earn 38 demerit points combined RITA RAHMATI NEWS EDITOR @RITARAHMATI Demerit points have stacked up for some slates throughout this year’s University Students’ Council presidential campaign.

The final demerit point tally is: 26 points for Team Tobi, 12 points for Team Jan/Mohammad and 0 points for Team DiBrina.

Demerit points are awarded to candidates who break the rules as stated in by-law #2 of the USC’s elections procedures and are awarded by the Elections Governance Committee (EGC), led by the chief returning officer (CRO), Erin McCauley.

The slates were given demerit points for a variety of violations, most of which were considered minor violations.

Team Jan/Mohammad was awarded six points for violating section 12.1 early in the campaign period when they used copyrighted logos and the prohibited use of the colour purple in their campaign video. The EGC determined the video had the potential to influence many students with over 2,000 views, and so it was considered a major violation.

Team Tobi was also awarded eight points for unauthorized campaigning — campaigning outside the designated hours — inside two main campus residences as stated in section 11.9.3 of by-law #2. Similarly, they were awarded six points for unauthorized campaigning in a Huron University College residence.

Other demerit points were given out for social media posts such as pre-campaigning through sharing Gazette articles on the election and postings using the USC logo.

2016–17 TEAM AVILA — INSIDER Team Avila’s slate counts as an insider slate as Eddy Avila was the orientation coordinator and a member of the Science Students’ Council (SSC). Vice-president Jamie Cleary was the associate vice-president external for the USC and an internal affairs officer on SSC. President’s faculty: Science Year: Fourth year Colour: Red 2015–16 TEAM SOPHIE — INSIDER Sophie Helpard was Huron’s head soph in her second year and served as the orientation coordinator for the O-Week of her third year. Her vice-president external, Lindsee Perkins, was the associate vice-president municipal affairs and vice-president internal, Alex Benac, had unsuccessfully ran for vice-president the previous year.

President’s faculty: Social Science at Huron President’s year: Third year Colour: Red

KATHERINE YU GAZETTE

Team Tobi

26 Team Jan/Mohammad

12 Team DiBrina

Demerit Points 0 10 20 30

2014–15 TEAM HELFAND — INSIDER Matt Helfand’s team had one of the most stacked résumés.

Helfand was formerly the Social Science Students’ Council president, vice-president internal Emily Addison, was Huron’s president and vice-president external, Jen Carter, was the King’s president.

President’s faculty: Social Science President’s year: Graduate student Colour: Blue 2013–14 TEAM WHELAN — INSIDER Pat Whelan was an insider candidate having previously been a student senator-at-large and a social science councillor. Vice-president internal Amir Eftekharpour served as the USC ChangeCamp Coordinator and vice-president internal Sam Krishnapillai, was a health sciences councillor.

President’s faculty: Social Science President’s year: Fourth Year Colour: Red