Jack Steffen (26Ox) won the Oxford College Student Government Association (OxSGA) presidential election and Delaney Arnold (26Ox) won the executive vice presidential election, according to an email the OxSGA Elections Board sent to Oxford College students on April 3.
This year’s elections were the first student government elections at Emory University to implement a ranked-choice voting system, according to OxSGA. With the new voting process, students could rank all the candidates by preference. OxSGA will continue to use ranked voting in future elections.
Both races were close elections, with Steffen earning 122 votes in the first round of calculations, 127 in the second and finally winning with 153 votes in the final round (51.86%). The presidential runner-up was David Fernandez (26Ox), who finished with 142 votes in the final round (48.14%). Presidential candidate Emma Jorgensen (26Ox) did not make it to the final round of voting and finished with 76 votes (25.76%) in the second round, before being eliminated.
In total, 295 students voted in the election, a 40.5% increase in turnout from 210 votes in the 2024 OxSGA presidential election.
Steffen was enthusiastic about the increased voter turnout and what it means for OxSGA’s future.
“I was on the phone with my aunt when I got the notification,” Steffen said. “My knees were weak, I was so excited. It was a close race, and I’m excited with how it turned out, obviously, and I’m very excited to see what we can do.”
Steffen emphasized his gratitude for this opportunity and his hopes for Oxford in a statement to The Emory Wheel.
“I am beyond thankful to the Oxford community for choosing me to serve them over this next year, and I am incredibly proud of each student who chose to run for elected positions,” Steffen wrote. “To every Oxford student, thank you for placing your confidence in me to work tirelessly on your behalf. I will not let you down.”
Steffen’s platform included plans to tackle food insecurity by allowing Oxford students to use meal swipes at the Oxford Family Kitchen after dining hall hours and opening a small market in Pierce Hall that students could access until 2 a.m. His campaign also includes enhancing pre-professional advising, creating an international student senator position in OxSGA, offering self-defense training to students and improving dormitory water pressure. In addition, he hopes to make boba tea a staple on campus and install a student jukebox in the Oxford Student Center.
OxSGA sent out applications for the executive cabinet positions on April 6, including a new chief of staff role. Steffen mentioned his excitement to work with Arnold, the executive vice president-elect.
“Having someone like Delaney by my side is going to be very, very exciting, and I know she’s gonna be the right person for the job,” Steffen said.
Arnold amassed 161 (54.39%) votes compared to Sam Santana (26Ox)’s 134 (45.61%) votes by the final count. Arnold said neither she nor Santana “actively campaigned,” allowing voters to instead weigh the candidates’ reputation and hear information by word of mouth.
“I had a few Instagram posts, but other than that, we didn’t really go staunchly in opposition of each other,” Arnold said.
Arnold’s platform featured plans to restructure the Inter-Club Council to serve club presidents and the student body. Inter-Club Council is currently a body of club executives led by OxSGA that help facilitate cooperation between campus organizations. Additionally, Arnold said she wants to revise the club chartering process by creating separate classifications for large and small clubs. Under this system, clubs who want to remain smaller can do so, freeing up additional funds for clubs with more members and larger events. Finally, Arnold is working toward creating an outdoor space for Dooley’s Tavern, including a stage and a mocktail bar.
Arnold said she was both overwhelmed and excited about her future with OxSGA.
“I’m definitely looking forward to creating a plan of action this summer, and I’m really looking forward to leading next year, and hav[ing] our first-year senators come in and truly have us function as a greater and better full SGA,” Arnold said.
Steffen and Arnold will take office after an OxSGA meeting on April 23.
Kimble Schiller (she/her) (26Ox,28C) is from Houston, Texas and is majoring in economics and philosophy, politics and law. Outside of the Wheel, she can be found studying, hiking, writing for fun, or spending time with friends.
