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After dressing as an elf for two weeks, Peter Scelfo ’15 won a freshman seat on the Student Assembly, drawing 819 votes in this week’s election. Scelfo received 146 votes more than his nearest competitor and 436 more than last year’s highest vote-getter.
Thirty-four freshmen competed for four seats on the assembly. Also winning freshman seats on the assembly were Ross Gitlin ’15, Don Muir ’15 and EJ Yeterian ’15, who raked in 673, 552 and 331 votes respectively.
Jay Lee ’13 won the Transfer at Large election, Sarah Balik ’15 won the CALS at Large election and Avi Meller ’13 won the Engineering at Large election.
Scelfo, who initially thought his chances were low, said he was so happy upon learning the results that he started to tear up. He attributed his win to his “clever chalkings, my video, my caroling, my dedication and my genuineness.”
During his campaign, Scelfo pledged to “continue to make Cornell more accessible to people with disabilities, get the one free ID card replacement back and continue to bring smiles to Cornellians.”
Though Gitlin’s tactics did not include dressing in costume or caroling, he garnered enough votes to finish second in the freshman election and win a seat on the Assembly. He said he focused his campaign strategy on “meeting people face to face.”
Gitlin, whose chalkings pushed voters to “Git what you deserve,” will be joining his brother, S.A. Vice President Adam Gitlin ’13, on the assembly. Ross’ oldest brother, Ben Gitlin ’12, is the Editor-in-Chief of The Sun.
This year, Ross Gitlin said he will “strive to get many little things done that candidates in the past have promised but have failed to deliver.”
Balik said she has many ideas and goals for the upcoming year, including suggestion boxes at Mann Library, more trash, composting and recycling receptacles across campus and a mentoring program for underclassmen to seek guidance from upperclassmen in the same major.
“As soon as I arrived here, I knew that I wanted to find a way to make a positive difference at Cornell, and Student Assembly seemed like the perfect opportunity to do so,” she said.
All of the newly-elected representatives will begin their terms on the assembly immediately.
“I’m extremely excited to welcome all the new representatives to the S.A.,” said Natalie Raps ’12, S.A. president. “The S.A. is tasked with increased responsibilities this year, but with new members and the passion they'll bring, it can only help the S.A further its initiatives.”