March 28, 2024 | NEWS | By Taylor Lynch
A Block-long election cycle of campaigning, canvassing and bulletin boards covered with candidate posters came to a close on Tuesday, March 5, following the end of the Colorado College Student Government Association Executive Elections for the 24-25 Academic Year.
Among the positions up for grabs were Student Body President and Vice President of each of the five CCSGA subcommittees: Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI), Finance, Internal Affairs, Outreach and Student Life. The individual responsibilities of each executive are appointment dependent, but together the executive committee oversees the agenda setting and oversight of the entire CCSGA body.
Numerous factors caused this cycle to be particularly rocky. High stakes races for Student Body President, VP of Finance, VP of Outreach and VP of Student Life led to passionate campaigns. CCSGA’s mid-election decision to allow for both written and online candidate signature petitions was another point of contention. An additional error on election day prevented senior-standing students from accessing ballots, which led to a voter deadline extension from the evening of March 4 to 12:00 p.m. on March 5. These setbacks opened the floor to criticism of CCSGA and the Internal Affairs Committee who are responsible for overseeing elections.
The Catalyst reached out to current Student Body President Vicente Taijeron regarding the controversial nature of the Executive Election, seeking his takeaways. In response, Taijeron issued an apology for the election chaos.
“I, as Student Body President, am sincerely sorry about any difficulty experienced during this election’s voting cycle,” said Taijeron. “I want to firmly reiterate CCSGA’s commitment to running efficient, fair, accessible, and equitable elections. I’ve spoken with the entirety of our executive team and we continue to reassess and revise our election processes to promote inclusivity and to make more visible the work of CCSGA.
Despite the obstacles which Taijeron acknowledges, the CC student body was informed of the election results via email on Wednesday, March 6. The communication introduced the following class of CCSGA Executives for the 2024-2025 Academic Year.
Student Body President: Koray Gates
Vice President of Finance: Reign La France
Vice President of Outreach: Royce Hinojosa
Vice President of Student Life: Tahamina Prity
Vice President of DEI: Rakim Z Johnson
Vice President of Internal Affairs: Patrick Loos
The Catalyst reached out to the newly elected executives to hear their election takeaways and hopes for their future term. Each candidate was given the opportunity to respond to the following prompts.
- What is your reaction to the election results, candidate process or any other comments about the election?
- Given your new appointment, what do you hope to accomplish in your new position?
Rising junior Koray Gates beat out competitor and classmate Mikey Richardson for the position of Student Body President. The Student Body President position, currently held by Vicente Taijeron, is the highest-ranking student-held position at CC. This non-voting member of CCSGA presides over the council. The Student Body President also serves as a leader for the student body by facilitating school-wide events and regularly meeting with CC leadership.
“I am overjoyed by the results of the election and am very thankful to the student body for trusting me with this opportunity. I am excited for the year to come and the things that we will accomplish,” Gates said.
Regarding hopes for his presidency, Gates cited some of his central campaign points as well as his goal of further developing CCSGA’s visibility in the general school community.
“In this role, I plan to follow through with the commitments I made during my campaign to foster healthy dialogue, increase student connection through school wide events, and develop a culture of collaboration and transparency within CCSGA so that it can better serve the student body. I will also be focused on making the organization more student-facing so that everyone can give their input and know what we are working on.”
The race for VP of Finance was the most highly contested this election cycle, boasting the largest number of candidates vying for the position for the cycle. Reign La France ultimately prevailed over her competitors: Veronica Gonzalez Paris, Jessica Duran and George Peltier, to become the next VP of the committee which she currently serves. When asked about her election reaction, La France noted her relief considering a tumultuous contest.
“In all of my time taking part in student government, in and out of CC, I have never experienced an election like this one before. The turmoil of emotions was extremely stressful, especially the last week leading to the ballots. Many factors led to the election being the way it ended up, but I believe we all have learned a great lesson from it. As someone who has been in CCSGA for three years and sat as the finance rep for two of them, I was confident I had a shot at winning this election but with how elections were panning out my confidence decreased. On the day of the election results, I sat at my desk alone nervously waiting for that email from CCSGA to pop up in my inbox. I felt my fellow candidates had a great shot at winning and that it would be a close call which made it that much scarier. To my surprise, I won! It was the biggest relief off my shoulders; I felt like I could breathe for the first time all week. Knowing the struggles that went on behind the scenes in CCSGA during the election made winning much more satisfying. I campaigned harder than I have had before, and it truly paid off. My campaign slogan ‘Make it Reign’ was a crowd favorite in addition to all the Reign puns I made.”
When asked about hopes for her incoming appointment, La France emphasized her commitment to creating a greater dialogue regarding the college’s finances.
“Given my new position as VP of Finance, I promise to be transparent with how all of our money is allocated, ethically distribute funding, and foster a sense of community in the finance committee. A goal I would like us to work on is to strengthen accessibility and communication between club leaders and CCSGA on budget matters. Although it may be challenging and not specifically related to finance, I find it necessary for CCSGA overall to emphasize prioritizing DEI, financial aid, and international students’ concerns. Something we in the finance committee have been working on is finding a way to connect CC students to the greater Colorado Springs community. I hope that we can work with student organizations on our campus to make this happen next year and meet as many student needs as possible.”
Royce Hinojosa, a rising junior, beat out Tor Evanstead ’26 to become the Vice President of Outreach. Hinojosa currently sits on the Outreach Committee and stressed his gratitude and excitement upon receiving the election results.
“I’m so grateful for the Internal Affairs Committee and how much work they’ve put into these elections—it takes some serious dedication, time, and energy to make this all happen! I was also excited to see the number of candidates running this year. In the past, a lot of these exec spots have been uncontested, but it’s important for these positions to be competitive so that we are most effectively representing the Student Body’s interests. As for the folks that have been elected, it seems like we’re all looking to make CCSGA more community oriented, transparent, and accountable. I’m feeling ready to get work done alongside them.”
When asked about his goals for the new role, Hinojosa emphasized his hope to further the connection between CC and the Colorado Springs community.
“My first task is going to be gauging what students are missing right now in regard to connection with COS. You name it, I’ll get it done (I pinky promise)—on that note pleaseeee email me with suggestions. I’m so happy to hear what people are wanting more of! My own vision includes helping Palmer High students with college prep; creating a UCCS, Air Force, and CC student collaborative to foster conversation and connection with other students in the area; a vintage store pop-up with The Hause Collective (a project I’ve been working on for over a year now); an open mic at Concrete Couch; and building relationships with local elected officials. More broadly, I’m interested in sustained connection with other people that live in the Springs and cultivating a culture that allows local organizations to lean on us when they need more volunteers, opinions, or emotional support. It’s no secret that the Springs is home to a menagerie of people and beliefs, but I think there’s something beautiful about that. I hope that my time in this position helps others to see that too! (Again, literally email me feedback and thoughts, I am begging, pleading, on my hands and knees, etc.).”
As of Monday, March 25, submissions are open for Class Rep., DEI, and Finance Committee Positions. This election will round out the CCSGA Full Council for the 2024-2025 Academic Year. Prospective candidates must submit a short application, candidate statement and a twenty-five signature petition to be viable. Interested parties can find more information through the informational email sent to all CC students on March 25, or by reaching out to CCSGA@coloradocollege.edu. Applications are due at midnight on Sunday, March 31.
When asked for final insight and wisdom, Student Body President Vicente Taijeron reasserted the commitment of CCSGA, which he hopes will be demonstrated in the upcoming general election:
“Through the next elections, it is my hope that the student body will see the numerous logistical improvements we have worked on, and I encourage any student with concerns or feedback to please email me or my fellow representatives. CCSGA remains committed to serving our peers, to fostering a better campus and to building genuine and sincere community among all who call CC home.”