By Reubin Turner
City editor
UPDATED: 11:53 p.m. April 14, 2015
A runoff has been declared in the election for Baylor student body president between Houston junior Pearson Brown and Frisco sophomore James Porter.
According to the results posted outside of the student government office, Brown received 1,057 votes, compared to Porter who received 771 votes and Kinghorn who received 699. The Electoral Code states that in order for a candidate to win an election outright, they must beat the candidate by 12 percent. Brown needed 33 more votes to win by that percentage.
Port Barre, La., sophomore Lindsey Bacque and Houston sophomore Steven Newcomb were elected to the positions of internal vice president and external vice president, respectively. Both ran unopposed.
Although Brown and Porter agreed that helping connect students on and off campus would be at the forefront of their agendas, several parts of their platforms served to make the candidates distinct.
Brown ran on a platform that would encourage students to “Ignite, Launch and Soar.” Brown said he is honored to be able to continue conveying his message to the student body over the next two days before the runoff.
“We are just thrilled and excited about how everything has turned out, and going forward, we plan to keep reaching out to students to let them know how we would like to help them,” Brown said. Brown also said he was extremely pleased with the hard work his campaign team put in to reach voters.
Pearson currently serves as the Senate Pro Tempore and chair of the Operations and Procedures Committee, and has been in the senate since his freshman year when he served as a senator. Pearson said his experience helps qualify him for the position of student body president.
During the campaign, Porter said campus safety and connectivity were considered priorities on his agenda.
Porter ran against Brown and Katy junior Lawren Kinghorn, who currently serves as the internal vice president. He was the youngest candidate running for the position.
Despite the fact that Porter does not have as much experience as the other candidates, Porter said he’s had a huge role in legislation this past year, helping to pass over a third of the bill that have come through the Senate. Porter said working with the administration will aid in his effectiveness.
Lombard, Ill., senior Danny Huizinga, Porter’s campaign manager gave a statement on Porter’s behalf.
“We are so thankful for the amazing level of support we have received so far,” he said. “There is hard work ahead before Thursday, but we’re confident our platform will continue to resonate with students.”
Among the Senate legislation Porter has been involved in this year are: consistent curfew hours among the dorms, putting a bike repair station in front of the Bill Daniel Student Center and several bills that lobbied for student government to help fund various student organization philanthropy events and fundraisers.
Voting for the runoff election will be held Thursday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
