The Student Association (SA) Congress met on Tuesday night to officially approve the results of the recent SA E-Board and Binghamton University Council representative elections.

For the elections on March 9, students could vote online for the positions of president, executive vice president (EVP), vice president of finance (VPF), vice president for multicultural affairs (VPMA), vice president for programming (VPP), vice president for student success (VPSS) and BU Council representative. In total, 1,941 ballots were cast, an increase from last year’s total of 1,661. Alexandria Chun, chair of the SA Elections and Judiciary Committee and a sophomore majoring in politics, philosophy and law, said she was satisfied with how the election process went, despite any issues that had arisen.

“It was extremely eventful with three separate hearings and almost 25 submitted grievances, but I don’t think anyone can say that they were disappointed by the elections process,” Chun said. “The creation of the first comprehensive Election Code definitely pointed out some flaws in our system that we are very ready to amend.”

A draft for a new SA Election Code had been proposed in December and included the addition of a penalties document, outlining campaign rules and punishments for violations.

Due to the four candidates running for the position of president, the SA Elections and Judiciary Committee had implemented a ranked-choice voting system, which eliminates one candidate who has the least amount of votes periodically. Through the system, Nia Johnson, a junior majoring in human development, was elected president with a total of 952 votes. Samantha Carroll, a sophomore majoring in philosophy, politics and law, came in second place with 684 votes, Galileo Savage, a sophomore majoring in political science, came in third place with 399 votes and Ethan Kesler, a sophomore majoring in business administration, came in fourth place with 308 votes.

Johnson, the president-elect, said that she was grateful to have been elected to the position and wants to make the campus a safer environment for all students.

“There is no doubt in my mind that this newly elected Executive Board has the grit and the passion to make this campus a better one,” Johnson wrote in an email. “Since speaking with the newly elected Executive Board, we are all on the same page on what needs to get done and we are already brainstorming ways to start our term strong. I can honestly say, this newly elected Executive Board is not one to be taken lightly, because we truly are an Executive Board that is here to serve the students and enact change.”

Also elected to the E-Board were Daniel Croce, junior majoring in philosophy, politics and law, as VPF, Anindya Debnath, an undeclared freshman, as VPSS, Erica Juarez, a sophomore majoring in human development, as VPMA and Avery Benzaken, a senior majoring in economics, as BU Council representative. Two of the positions, EVP and VPP, were uncontested, with the winners being Daniel Rocabado, a junior majoring in philosophy, politics and law, and Jocelyn Phipps, a junior double-majoring in political science and sociology, respectively.

Also on the ballot was an initiative to make the student activity fee continue to be mandatory instead of optional for all students, which passed with 66.6 percent of the vote.

Overall, 19 out of the 20 members of the SA Congress present voted to confirm the results, with one member abstaining from the confirmation vote.

David Hatami, current SA president and a senior majoring in political science and business administration, said he is excited to see what the future has in store for the SA.

“The Elections and Judiciary Committee did a strong job in facilitating this year’s SA election,” Hatami wrote in an email. “I am proud of their work and am happy to see the certification of the election results in Congress this past Tuesday. As the outgoing president of the SA, I am glad to express my steadfast confidence in the newly elected Executive Board. I am sure that we will see great leadership next year as we begin a new chapter for our campus community.”