In protest of the removal of James Hankins from the ballot for Student Senate president, Sen. Greg Doucette and Sara Yasin, student centers president, chose to add their names to the books for the position Friday.
Doucette and Yasin join Jon Chichwak as candidates for Student Senate president, after the Elections Commission removed Hankins for a Polices, Rules and Regulation violation.
“Personally I think it’s a shame to have an uncontested race,” Yasin said. “I firmly believe [Hankins] should be in that office.”
Chichwak said he wasn’t surprised by the addition of the names, as he figured he wouldn’t run uncontested.
“I knew I wasn’t going to be the only candidate,” Chichwak said. “I felt [Doucette] would most likely run, but I didn’t know [Yasin] would.”
Both Doucette and Yasin fought for Hankins’ name to be put back on the ballot Thursday night. Doucette wrote a bill for the Senate to override the Elections Commission’s decision while Yasin sat in as proxy for Hankins at the Senate meeting.
Both said they will try to push Hankins as Senate president if either of them are elected.
“It’s definitely an option,” Yasin said. “People want to see him as Senate president, but the PRR still counts against him.”
Doucette agreed, saying they’ll work to find a way to put Hankins in the position.
“That’s what we’ll do if [Hankins] is allowed to,” Doucette said. “But if we can’t do that, then we’ll definitely serve out the rest of the year.”
But with Hankins still ineligible due to the PRR, Chichwak said he doesn’t see this happening.
“The adminstration has said that [Hankins] is not qualified to run in Senate at all,” Chichwak said. “But I guess if his appeal goes through, then who knows.”
Both said they are taking the race seriously, and if elected will fill the position to their fullest.
“If I win, I do have a few things in line that I want to do,” Yasin said.
Doucette and Yasin began campaigning Friday, talking to people and creating groups on Facebook to get the word out.
“I’m going to try to get members of athletic teams out passing out handbills, and getting posters up,” Doucette said. “But it’s a short timetable and neither of us really have the time or the resources.”
Yasin noted that she has nothing against Chichwak, but said she firmly believes in Hankins’ cause.
“This isn’t about [Chichwak] — I don’t really know [him],” Yasin said. “This is about a person that I felt strong about for Student Senate president and the fact that I feel that more candidates are needed on the ballot.”
Still, Chichwak said some of the negative campaigning this week has surprised him.
“I’ve been dissapointed with the other candidates’ personal attacks on me,” Chichwak said. “I never thought North Carolina State student politics would get to the point where there would be negative campaigning. I don’t plan on stooping down to that.”
