Correction: The version of this story that appeared in the Sept. 14 edition of The Pendulum misidentified Konnor Porro as the Class of 2020 president. He was a candidate for Class of 2020 vice president. Elon News Network regrets the error.
Elon University SGA Executive President senior Kyle Porro had to participate in a runoff election to win the presidency lastspring, and he said he “feels really bad” for the current Class of 2020 vice presidential candidates — the next 24 hours are going to be “stressful.”
Almost 800 votes were cast in the SGA Class of 2020 election, and freshmen Konnor Porro and Xavier Bryant each earned 349 votes for vice president. A runoff election will be held 9 a.m. - 2 p.m. Sept. 14 to break the tie and elect the position. A link will be sent to all freshmen from Dean of Student Health and Wellness Jana Lynn Patterson, and the winner will be announced on social media as soon as the votes are tallied.
Livi Murray won the election for president; Amanda Yaffa won the election for treasurer; Samantha O’Connor won the election for secretary; and Julia Field, Katie Wakiyama and Steven Klausner won their elections for senate seats.
Vice Presidential candidate Konnor Porro, Kyle's younger brother, thought of the runoff in a different light than his older brother. While Kyle was stressed about his runoff last spring, Konnor said he was excited by the close race because it meant that Elon students are actively engaging with SGA.
“It’s really exciting,” Konnor Porro said, even though he sighed and hung his head when he heard he would be participating in a runoff. “[Bryant and I] both used different strategies and both had different messages. I guess that just shows that my classmates really like both of us.
"No matter who wins, I feel like either of us can get the job done.”
Murray also shared Konnor Porro’s sentiments when she learned she had won. The Atlanta native said she initially didn’t consider running for office, but was convinced by Class of 2019 president Kenneth Brown Jr. to campaign. She was persuaded, but tried to run for senator at first. Brown and her friends then convinced her to run for president. Murray said winning her campaign made her happy because it is the first time she publicly went out and tried to earn votes.
Murray was also excited because this is the second consecutive year that an African-American was elected freshman class president.
“One of my goals during this election was to try and represent the minority population since there aren’t a lot of us here,” Murray said. “Learning that this is the second year that a black student was elected [freshman] president [makes me] really happy because I know both Kenneth and I will have perspectives that other people won’t.”