Voting is now open in the race to be Co-Presidents of the HBS Students Association for 2015-16. Students can vote here.
The two tickets of candidates, Aziz Albahar & Lynn ElHarake, and Anya Hayden & Brad Minkow, ended two weeks of campaigning with final pitches to RC classes yesterday over lunch.
The largest struggle students have faced thus far is differentiating between the two teams, with both offering evolutionary change to the status quo.
At the same time, extensive regulations over the nature and extent of candidates’ campaigning also contributed to students scratching their heads about the differences between the two teams.
As a result, many students that I spoke to had voted or planned to vote for whichever ticket contained a person they knew personally.
The lunchtime presentations offered both tickets their final chance to pitch to large audiences of RCs.
In Section I, Aziz & Lynn led off and spoke mainly about key policies, like improved career resources for those who want to work outside of finance or consulting, a formal program of thanks for support staff and an increase in fireside chats with faculty and senior executives. They left a significant amount of time for questions, during which they were asked to speak about their motivations (a desire to commit to improving the experience of students) for seeking the office, as well as how they would change the SA’s current budget.
Anya & Brad offered a more lively, more informal presentation that focused more on their motivation for seeking office, and the values they would bring to the job. The pair focused in particular on the importance of supporting mental health and diversity, though they did mention some more general policy initiatives. Brad highlighted the value of his experience as President of Section G, and the insight that had given him into issues facing the class as a whole. However they only left enough time to take a single question from the section, so there wasn’t opportunity for Section I to push for policy specifics.
Last week, The Harbus brought you exclusive interviews with both sets of candidates.
We will report the results of the election, and bring you an interview with the winners, as soon as possible after the results are available.
