Northern Essex’s Student Government Elections came to a close on March 3, with just 44 NECC student votes counted. The special election filled five positions on the board; however, two positions remain vacant.
“In the past, I remember seeing low voting numbers, but it was always at least 100 votes. Some students voted more than once, and some students who are not enrolled tried to vote, but 44 is the final count after taking those votes that don’t count out,” said Stephanie Haskell, SGA adviser and election organizer.
Voter turnout is a drastic shift from previous years. For example, in 2020, all candidates needed at least 50 student nominators just to appear on the ballot. However, the board has some theories as to why these numbers were so low.
“The voting period was shorter than we usually have, and the voting numbers showed that […] This was the first time using Microsoft Forms instead of Google forms since we now have this available through our college account. We wonder if some students didn’t vote because they had to verify their account,” said Haskell.
Despite the low turnout, SGA election results have been shared via social media and NECC’s weekly email updates. The winners included President Franziska Hoene, Programing Chair of Lawrence Ozgur Sutlu, Programing Chair of Haverhill Sarah Pachano, Marketing Chair Toni Pavao and Secretary MacKenzie Lio-MacDougall.
“When I found out that I won the election, I was in shock, and then I became super excited. I am glad that I won because of all the work I get to do for SGA,” said new SGA President Franziska Hoene.
Hoene’s new position as president has left her former position as vice president of the Haverhill campus vacant. This is the second currently vacant position alongside treasurer, which had no runners this past election.
“Currently, the main things I am working on is the Golden Lamp Award and the NECC wifi problem,” said Hoene.
This past election also welcomed three new members onto the SGA board, including Programming Chair of Lawrence Ozgur Sutlu, Programing Chair of Haverhill Sarah Pachano, and Secretary MacKenzie Lio-MacDougall.
“Franziska has been a great president already, and Stephanie Haskell is an amazing adviser […] I wanted to contribute and participate in the school, and I know my strengths, and I thought I could be more of service in the programming chair or marketing,” said new Programming Chair Haverhill Sarah Pachano.
Students interested in becoming a member can find information via SGA’s blackboard page under student life on www.necc.mass.edu. Additional election news will be available through NECC’s weekly email updates and @neccsga and @neccstudentlife.
