Gusmorino Elected Undergraduate Council President

Paul A. Gusmorino '02 defeated four other candidates to become the next Undergraduate Council president last night.

In the final round, he had 1,634 votes compared to 1,118 for Stephen N. Smith '02, who finished second.

Gusmorino's running mate, Sujean S. Lee '03, defeated four opponents to win the council vice presidency. She received 1,534 votes, compared to 1,022 for James C. Coleman '02 and 336 for Amias M. Gerety '02.

Using the Single Transferable Vote (STV) system, voters can rank each of the candidates. In each round, the lowest ranking candidate is eliminated and votes for that candidate are redistributed according to who those voters ranked second.

Shortly after 1 a.m. this morning, the Election Commission declared Gusmorino the winner after the three day voting period.

When the commission called Gusmorino at his victory party, the room--packed with supporters and bathed in an orange light, Gusmorino's campaign color--exploded in cheers and hugs.

"I'm excited about how good the council will be good next year," he told cheering supporters last night.

Gusmorino and Lee ran on the motto of "We've done it before. We'll do it again"--referring to their past accomplishments on council, like the UC Books initiative and the first-year formal. Their future promises focused on pragmatic goals, like salad at fly-by lunch and a CUE guide to concentrations, rather than social issues.

"What we showed today is that a campaign of concrete ideas and experience can win," said Todd E. Plants '02, Gusmorino's campaign manager.

"It was fantastic to run with so many terrifically qualified candidates," Gusmorino said.

While disappointed with the result, Gusmorino's opponents expressed optimism about the upcoming year.

"I'm happy with the winner," said opponent Justin A. Barkley '02, who garnered 154 votes.

Smith waited for the results in his Adams House suite with friends.

"Paul will do a great job," he said.

Despite the loss, Smith said he plans to remain very involved in the council's activities.

"Anytime James and I have a lot of free time on our hands, something good is going to come of it," he said.

Gusmorino said he is already looking ahead to his next project. As his victory party broke up this morning, Gusmorino looked around the room and smiled.

"You know what I have to do now? Starting coding for next semester's UC Books," he laughed.