On Monday, Oct. 3, the freshmen class will vote in a runoff election between Zoe Wang ’26 and Mac Mueller ’26 to decide the class of 2026 president. Both candidates received 217 votes in last week’s election.
“I want to thank everyone for their patience and understanding as we navigate uncharted waters for SA. The Attorney General and Independent Elections Commission have been working to ensure a fair election process. Both individuals seem like great candidates and I look forward to seeing the outcome!” Cho said regarding the election.
The tie and subsequent runoff election are “unprecedented,” according to Attorney General Kevin Lopez Pelaez ’23. Lopez Pelaez found neither the Code or the Constitution of SA states what to do in the case of a tied election and that neither prohibits a runoff election. As such, Lopez Pelaez recommended a runoff election to take place after the written approval from SA President John Cho ’23 and Chair of the Senate Eugene Lee ’23, which occurred over the weekend to allow for a Monday election.
“This election proved how every single vote truly matters. To think that if one more person decided to take just a minute out of their day to vote, we would be congratulating a new class president. I encourage the class of 2026 to keep turnout high and vote for the most qualified candidate,” Lee said.
Wang’s campaign has run on issues ranging from reimbursing students for rides to polling locations on Election Day to promising to increase transparency by holding weekly office hours.
Mueller’s campaign has focused on bringing Charmin Ultra Soft toilet paper to every bathroom on campus, along with other issues such as eliminating the lockout fee.
Their campaigns have overlapping policy commitments, with both promising to expand Commons Dining Hall hours on weekdays and supporting the dining hall workers unionization efforts.
“Regardless of who may win, I look forward to working with them in the senate,” Lee said.
Members of the class of 2026 can cast their votes from 8 AM until 8 PM.