SUB ATRIUM — Mia Amin will serve as the next president of the undergraduate student body.
Amin garnered 870 votes — about 57.8% of the total undergraduates that participated in the election.
The Associated Students of the University of New Mexico president acts as the main representative to UNM's administration when it comes to tuition and fee raises and advocating for what students want.
Amin ran on a platform of increased inclusivity, accountability and a mentality shift within ASUNM.
Amin, alongside her vice-presidential pick Ana Milan, mainly aim to achieve their goals by in-person outreach to all populations on campus and increased internal ASUNM communication.
They detailed initiatives like the creation of a presidential advisory board for fair hiring practices within the agencies, increased student forums and a revamp of ASUNM monthly emails.
Amin attributes her success to diverse outreach while campaigning. Her opponent, Jacob Silva, felt differently.
Silva, a longtime senator and cabinet member, said Amin did not run a fair campaign.
Silva said he felt Amin singled out his status as a member of Alpha Tau Omega, a prominent UNM fraternity, while ignoring a number of other identity factors.
"They used that against me, and I didn't use the fact that they are a part of any organization against them," Silva said.
Amin is an international student. She majors in business and acts as the director of the Center for Financial Capability and the LoboTHON finance director.
Shortly after the election results, Silva tweeted, "I can't wait to see ASUNM burn to the ground haha."
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Silva has since deleted the tweet.
"I probably shouldn't have tweeted that," he said. "I was just really mad and was venting."
Jacob Silva (left) and Emma Hotz (right) lost in the race for ASUNM President and Vice President on March 11, 2020 in the Student Union Building.
Silva said he considered contesting the election — however, he wasn't comfortable at the moment with undergoing that process.
Milan also bested her nice presidential challenger Emma Hotz and received 54.3% of the vote.
Amin and Milan's win came with an ASUNM election turnout of less than 10% of the undergraduate student body.
Wednesday's election turnout continued a multi-year trend of low turnout for ASUNM elections, suggesting a general lack of awareness amongst the undergraduate student body of the critical role of ASUNM officials in UNM's funding processes.
"It's understandable," Elections Commission Executive Director Todd Moe said. "A lot of people don't understand everything about ASUNM."
Moe said he predicted about 1,500 students would turn out. In total, the presidential election saw 1,505 undergraduates vote. Last year, 1,476 students voted — about 9% of the spring 2019 undergraduate population.
Justin Garcia is the Editor-in-Chief of the Daily Lobo. He can be contacted at editorinchief@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @Just516garc
