The results of the ASNMU election were announced early last week with a new cohort being sworn into the roles of president, vice president and representatives. 

Zora Binert was elected president of ASNMU after receiving 388 votes and Gwen Feamster won the vice-president position after receiving 393 votes. In the presidential election there were a total of 725 students who voted and in the vice-presidential election there were 710 total votes. 

“I’m most excited to get to work more closely with the administration and help convey student concerns. I think that student voices are extremely important and powerful because we are who get affected the most. I’m excited to have a part in improving the university,” Binert said.

Binert has previously been involved in passing resolutions with the previous ASNMU assembly focused on mental health days and the approval of Jason Morgan, former ASNMU president, to the NMU Board of Trustees. She was also involved with the Period Project, Career Closet, drafting a Grief Absence Policy and planning conferences with other university student governments. 

“I am adamant about advocating for students. I want to hear what they have to say and what they need from the university in order to succeed and I will do whatever I can to make sure that happens. Luckily, I have been part of ASNMU for three years which has allowed me to build relationships with a lot of faculty and administration, so I am confident while meeting with them about issues on campus,” Binert said. 

The election which saw a significantly low amount of voters suffered from poor publicity and getting their platforms out to the larger student body, Feamster said. 

In previous years the ASNMU election typically held in-person debates which were not held this year. They instead relied on social media campaigns to help raise awareness about student candidates. 

“I think the hardest part of this election cycle was making sure that Gwen and I were able to communicate with as many students as we could. We really wanted to make sure people knew what our goals were and knew who we were,” Binert said. 

The other positions that were approved during the election included George Cook for on-campus apartment representative, Miya Berg for off-campus representative and Madison Christine for college of arts and science representative. 

In addition to the new positions, students also voted on two proposals for funding increases for the Student Finance Committee and ASNMU. The SFC asked for a $10 increase from the student activity fee which was not approved after a vote of 368 yes to 368 no. ASNMU asked for a $0.10 increase from the student activity fee which was approved with a vote of 493 yes and 244 no. 

“Students can expect a lot of dedication and hard work. Zora has been a great advocate for students since she has joined the assembly, and I am dedicated to making sure all students are heard. I’m ready to have some of those difficult conversations to make this institution better and make sure students are represented by pushing for recruitment for the Assembly,” Feamster said.