Next year’s Associated Students of the University of Arizona candidates found out where they stand so far in 2010-11 elections.
The crowd — filled with members of the Freshman Class Council, prospective candidates and supporters — clamored to hear the results, Wednesday night in the Kiva Room of the Student Union Memorial Center.
The results for the uncontested spots for the Associated Students of the University of Arizona president and executive vice president were not a surprise.
Executive Vice President Emily Fritze is running for president and Sen. Katherine Weingartner is running for executive vice president.
The race of administrative vice president tilted toward Brett Ponton who received 53.6 percent of the vote, 46.3 percent going to Sen. Hillary Davidson.
Justine Piscitello, ASUA elections commissioner, noted that even though no candidates were eliminated, this primary was an important step in the election for all candidates.
“”The reason why we decided to have a primary election is so that you can assess where you are in the polls,”” said Piscitello.
In the results, candidate Garrett Voge, a pre-business freshman, garnered the most votes out of all the senatorial candidates with 9.32 percent of the vote.
“”I’m really excited,”” said Voge. “”It’s my first big thing in college (and) overall, it’s been a really positive experience.””
Candidate Taylor Bilby, a pre-business freshman, received the second most votes in the polls with 8.85 percent of the vote, shared Voge’s excitement about the results.
“”I’m really pleased with the results for sure,”” said Bilby. “”I mean, I was second and I definitely was surprised it was that high.””
All the candidates said the primary was a good barometer for their ongoing campaigns, which will culminate with next week’s elections.
Most candidates agreed with Trevor Hill, a sophomore studying English, that results can change, and it’s still anyone’s game.
“”It’s important that we go and hit it hard after this,”” said Hill, who received 12th place in the primary votes. “”I’m sure you’ll see an increase in candidate presence out there. It gets real after this.””
ASUA general elections take place Tuesday, March 9 and Wednesday, March 10 from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. with winners announced at 8:30 p.m. in the Kiva Room of the student union on March 10.