Michael Borzumate and Suzanne Peluso captured the top honors in the final elections held last week, taking over as Grand Marshal and President of the Union, respectively.
The Rules and Elections Committee, with the help of outgoing GM Chris Mather and outgoing PU Zack Ament, announced the results of all the elections before a crowd of anxious candidates.
Borzumate invited all the members of the Apollo Party into the spotlight after receiving the top hat from Mather. “I could not have done this without these people,” he said. “Thank you so much for everything.”
“Let’s go make this a great year,” he
concluded.
Peluso expressed similar sentiments. “I’m going to do a great job, and I look forward to a great year working with
everyone,” she said.
Peluso’s first goal is “appointing a talented, diverse E-Board.
“We really need more applicants and really good responses so we can get off to a great start next year,” she said.
Borzumate is working on getting his Senate off on the right foot as well, meeting with each elected senator individually this week, and then launching into a feedback campaign that will last for the rest of the semester.
In addition to listening to what students have to say, Borzumate wants to “close the loop” in order to combat the sense of apathy on campus. “We’re going to take contact information and get back to the people,” he said.
“We’re listening, so be open with your senators. Share with them the issues that you’re having, and we will do something about it,” he said.
Borzumate is excited about the position. “It is the best job in the world. I am the luckiest person on this campus,” he said.
“It’s been heartwarming, the reception I’ve gotten.”
Leaving the post, Mather feels good about his experience as GM.
“If I had to go back and do it again, I would,” he said. “There’s always areas that we could’ve improved, but I think we did a good job turning the Senate around.”
He plans to work with Borzumate to make the transition between Senates as smooth as possible.
“The ball’s in his court, and I’m just going to help him as much as he wants,” he said.
Ament was also happy with his term. “It’s been a good year. I had a great time holding the position and working with different people,” he said.
He was especially grateful for the support he received. “Thank you to the Union administrators as well as the Rensselaer administrators for their support throughout the year.”
