Author: Jessica Sion

The votes are in: Juliana Batista has been elected as Cornell’s new Student Assembly President and Emma Johnston as our new Student Assembly Executive Vice President. Now that the elections are over and we can once again cross Ho Plaza in peace, we asked our new SA leaders a few questions.

 

Here’s what our new President had to say:

What is your first plan of action as the newly elected SA President?

“To reach back out to the communities that I contacted during the election and to reach beyond the presidents of organizations. I’m creating a crowdsourced list of grievances to present to President Garrett in the form of action items. Also, [I plan to] work with Emma to get to know the new representatives and what inspires them to work for the student body. I also hope to draft goals and visions for the communities they represent.”

 

What was the weirdest reaction you received while quarter-carding?

“We tried to keep the whole quarter-carding thing light-hearted, [so] one day we brought out Wolfgang the husky with us. That day people really just wanted to pet the dog in peace without being handed a quarter-card to vote. It was very much a bait-and-switch – sorry to anyone I disappointed!”

 

What is some advice you have for future presidential candidates?

1. “Grassroots campaigns win – students want to interact with you, the candidate, face-to-face.”
2. “You should always be working 10 times harder than everyone on your team to inspire them and show that you care.”
3. “Dirty politics get you nowhere. Keep your head held high the entire time and focus on the issues and people.”
4. “Not everyone is going to love you – have a thick skin and take criticism with grace, humility, and knowing that the criticism comes from a place of trying to make you a better leader to therefore make the campus better.”

 
Next up, Veep Emma Johnston:

What is your first plan of action as the newly elected SA Executive VP?

“My biggest priority is continuing with my current role on the SA, while learning what it takes to be an executive member – two roles that are interrelated. Being the chair of our largest committee, I’m able to get students involved in important issues that were part of my platform. Currently, this includes:

1. Making a diversity, health, and sexual assault and alcohol safety education program for club leaders.
2. Raising awareness of Good Samaritan policies in Collegetown.
3. Helping people find housing who do not currently have it for next year.
4. Getting students involved in the Climate Action Plan for carbon neutrality.
5. Creating a project team called Code for Cornell that will hopefully allow students to design Cornell websites.
6. Working with students in DEA and the Architecture school to design the space for the grocery store, and more that I won’t bore you to go into.

 

…I don’t really sleep a whole lot.

 

Also very important is making internal changes to the SA to ensure that next year is successful, such as training our new members, reorganizing the currently disorganized committees, and electing our executive board so that they can learn the ropes from our current members.”

 

Do you have any funny campaign stories you could share with us?

“When I was getting my petitions signed to run, there was an individual who wouldn’t sign my paper until he did a background check of me on Google. Luckily, I was clear. Another girl also wrote down her credit card number instead of her ID.”

 

What is some advice you have for future candidates?

1. “If you’re thinking of running for the SA in the future, campaigning starts now. If you do it right, it’s not something that should only take up a week of cover photos and cheesy slogans. Start building relationships with student groups.”
2. “Gain experience on SA committees – as someone who spent two years on committees before running, I can vouch that it is the absolute best way to learn the frustrations of the SA but also how to get things done.”
3. “Be genuine in your intentions now, work hard, and be empathetic as you learn about the struggles your peers encounter. I assure you that you will not feel disingenuous or have to prove yourself a ton by the time elections roll around.”
4. “Actions and your personal relationships across campus speak louder than words or chalk or quarter-cards.”

 

We look forward to seeing all the amazing things these two accomplish over the next year!