Voters narrowed the number of Student Council presidential hopefuls from ten to six in Wednesday’s second round of voting in Commons. The remaining Upper candidates are Allegra Asplundh-Smith, Sam DuPont, Sam Levenback, Will Scharf, Aaron Stroble, and Fan Wang. These students will continue to broadcast their plans for school-wide change in hopes of becoming one of the final three presidential candidates when the third round of elections occurs next week. Scharf summed up the election, stating, “It feels great. The pressure is off for at least another week. I am extremely grateful to all of those who voted for me and I hope that I will be given the opportunity to speak in front of the school during the final round.” The only female candidate remaining from the original pool of 15 candidates was Asplundh-Smith. Asplundh-Smith expressed enthusiasm at having made it past the second round of voting, commenting, “I’m really proud to be representing the school and I’m honored to have made it this far. I’m happy to be with the candidates here and I look forward to some interesting debates, because we all have different ideas and views.” Stroble expressed similar sentiments, saying, “It is a great honor to have been selected into the top six candidates. I am in the company of a lot of strong candidates, and I think it will be an interesting election.” Each of the candidates has strikingly different platforms and comes with a various range of experience in student government. Scharf is presenting a campaign based on his wide experience as both a Lower and Upper Representative on Student Council. He stated, “The one thing that sets me apart from other candidates is my experience on the Council. I’ve built powerful working relationships with many members of the faculty and administration and, if elected, I will be sure to utilize these connections to the best of my ability.” Some of the other candidates, including Stroble, have little or no student government experience. Despite this, Stroble states, “[I have done my] research about the Student Council and [am] well prepared to serve. I will not be tainted by restrictions. I will think outside the box and be creative with my ideas. I believe I represent a good portion of the student body because I am an international student.” Levenback is presenting a campaign based on integrity and respect. He stated,” I feel that I have the qualifications and qualities necessary to effectively represent the student body…[As a current Disciplinary Committee representative], I will be open to the ideas of both the Council and the students and will remain attuned to the will of the students.” Asplundh-Smith hopes to reform the Pace of Life Committee by re-emphasizing the importance of students’ opinions. She would also like to modify the athletic requirement even further.
