-ASUN ELECTIONS
Students choose A-Team in run-off
A-TEAM from page 1
that he didn’t expect Wednesday’s
result when he came up with the idea of
running for president in January after
talking with friends at a coffee shop.
But after weeks of spreading |iis
message of changing the status quo,
Schafer said the reality of his being the
next student body president is anything
but far-fetched.
His ability to go from being
unknown to known during a seven
week campaign proves it, he said
“We put this campaign together and
nobody expected it to go anywhere,”
Schafer said. “I think it takes a good
deal of leadership to do what we have.”
Peterson said he felt the same way.
“Day one, it was all a fantasy,” he
said. “But every day it became more
and more real.”
And now that the victory is real,
both say they are ready to begin the real
work - governing.
Schafer said his first step would be
to talk to each senator.
“I want to sit down, talk to them,
find out their goals and what they want
to do,” he said.
He also said he would talk to Andy
Schuerman, current ASUN president,
to find out tile issues he thinks need to
be addressed after he leaves office.
Schafer acknowledged that both
teams fought hard during the run-off.
He said Empower ran a “classy
campaign” and hoped presidential can
didate Heath Mello would play an
active role during A-Team’s tenure.
Peterson said his first step would be
to learn parliamentary procedure and
how to run the senate most efficiently.
He said after the election he felt
confident about his leadership experi
ence, even though he has been unaffili
ated with ASUN thus far.
For him, it’s an advantage, he said.
“There is a lot of baggage and pre
conceptions that exist for those who are
in traditional leadership positions,” he
said.
He said he hoped the skeptics
would give the A-Team a chance.
“We just want people to approach
us with an open mind.”
Schafer’s father, Ed, said he was
proud of his son and had full faith in his
abilities to lead.
“I’m elated, I really am,” he said.
He said he remembered his own
experiences with student government
in college.
“Things have changed a lot since I
was in college,” he said. “Student gov
ernment was really an inside deal.”
On Wednesday night, Schafer
proved that it has changed, at least for
the time being.
“This shows that every person on
this campus, if they choose, can make a
difference.”
Voter turnout falls in run-off election
By Katie Mueting
Staff writer
Next year’s ASUN president qnd
first vice president were elected
Wednesday by 5.7 percent of UNL stu
dents.
Although A-Team’s Joel Schafer
and Riley Peterson received 55.18 per
cent of the votes in the run-off election,
only 9.7 percent of all students cast bal
lots.
Empower presidential candidate
Heath Mello and first vice presidential
candidate Cecily Rometo received
votes from 4.5 percent of the total stu
dent population.
A-Team’s Schafer and Peterson
received 1081 votes, and Empower’s
Mello and Rometo received 857 votes.
Atfty Ellis, Impact’s second vice
presidential candidate, received 49.52
percent - or 970 votes - defeating Mike
Butterfield, who was favored on 47.22
percent of the ballots with 925 votes.
The run-off was held because nei
ther party received enough votes in last
week’s initial election. To win an ASUN
election, a party or candidate must
receive a majority of votes or 10 percent
more than the second-place party or
candidate.
Voter turnout was down 4.7 percent
age points from last week’s election,
which brought 14.4 percent of students
to the polls.
Many students said they did not feel
educated enough about the candidates.
Others said they did not think their
vote could make a difference or that
they did not have the time to vote.
Steven Schanbacher, a junior com
puter science major, said he did not
vote.
“I just don’t feel student govern
Voter
*T u r n o u t
1995 12.7%
1996 8.4%
-^ 1997 9.8%
1998 13.5%
- 1999 13.2%
2000 14.4%
(last week's election)
2000 9.7%
(Wednesday's run-off election)
All-time high in the 1990's 16.3%
David Jane/DN
ment actually does anything anyhow,”
he said.
\ EA Sports 2000 Games! \
\ Games given away FREE \
\ on Monday From 7-9. \
■ \
8 -10 pm Monday j
\ 10-12 midnight Tues - Thurs WWKfiMKk ;
\ 1328 P St. ^SStmjSar \
rsssssssssssssssssSSSSSSS/sssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssS/
Relief. owdoyou I
spell it? UNI DCS.
The University of
Nebraska at Lincoln
Division of Continuing
Studies can help
relieve some of the
stress in your busy
life. You need a
break from your hec
tic schedule of run
ning from your job to
class and back. By
taking courses with
UNL’s College
Independent Study
program you can
work at your own
pace, from any place.
Call us at 472-4321
for a free catalog or
visit our office at the
Nebraska Center for
Continuing Education,
Room 269, 33rd and
Holdrege St
Division of Continuing I
Studies • Department lj
of Distance Education I
www.unl.«du/conCd/dist»d [
UNL’s most
popular
courses in:
Accounting
AGECON
Art History
Broadcasting
Classics
Ecology
Economics
English
Finance
Geography
History
Human Development
Management
Marketing
Mathematics
Nursing
Nutrition
Philosophy
Physics
Political Science
Psychology
Sociology
n
The Unkrersily of Nebraska is
an affirmative action/equal
opportunity inetkutron
I Celebrations Start at 11am
with a Free Corn Beef and
Cabbage Lunch!
Live Music Featuring