VOLUME 112, ISSUE 145
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. DTH/LAURA MORTON
Seke Ballard (left) and Seth Dearmin shake hands after the announcement that they will continue in a runoff election for student body president.
Dearmin received 40 percent of the vote while Ballard garnered 27 percent. The two candidates will continue campaigning until the Feb. 15 vote.
Dearmin, Ballard remain
STUDENT BODY
PRESIDENT RESULTS
■ SETH DEARMIN*
2,789 votes, 40%
■ SEKE BALLARD*
1,902 votes, 27%
■ TOM JENSEN
1,249 votes, 18%
■ LEIGHA BLACKWELL
1,006 votes, 14%
* denotes runoff candidates
Brady
to sit at
GPSFs
helm
Wins 93 percent
of votes for post
BY SHARI FELD
STAFF WRITER
Although more than 10,000
graduate and professional students
attend the University, 501 cast their
ballots Tuesday
to elect Mike
Brady president
of the Graduate
and Professional
Student
Federation.
Brady, who
ran unopposed
for the posi
tion, said he
i
Mike Brady
was still excited when his victory
was announced Tuesday night.
“It’s great,” he said. “It’s a relief,
even though I wasn’t expecting any
surprises. But it’s still nice to hear.”
Brady garnered 92.8 percent of
the 540 votes cast. Last year, 541
students voted for the position.
Since no other candidates were
vying for the position, Brady said,
he was worried that turnout would
SEE GPSF, PAGE 4
ONLINE
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BY KATIE HOFFMANN
AND CATHERINE ROBBS
STAFF WRITERS
In an outcome surprising to many onlookers in
Carroll Hall on Tuesday night, Seth Dearmin and
Seke Ballard learned that their candidacy for student
body president would be extended for a week.
Despite the momentum gathered early in the cam
paign by controversial candidate Tom Jensen, tied with
Dearmin with the most endorsements from campus
organizations, Dearmin and Ballard emerged steadily
in the lead.
Dearmin received 40 percent of the votes and Ballard
grabbed 27 percent of the votes, catapulting the two
candidates into a runoff election that will take place
next Tuesday. A runoff election is required when no
candidate receives more than 50 percent of the vote.
Write-ins lock senior class
BY STEPHANIE NEWTON
STAFF WRITER
Both Rashad McCants and Raymond
Felton now can add another statistic
to their athlete profiles: stealing what
could have been a deciding victory from
the election of senior class officials.
Of the 1,845 total votes that seniors
submitted for class president and vice
president Tuesday, 16 write-in candi
dates, including four members of the
men’s basketball team, were added to
the mix. Neither tandem officially on
the ballot for senior class president and
vice president garnered the 50 percent
majority required to be elected.
Senior class president and vice presi
dent hopefuls Madison Perry and Whit
Walker received 915 votes, amassing
49.59 percent of the vote, and their
opponents, Bobby Whisnant Jr. and
Jenny Peddycord, totaled 914 votes,
yielding 49.54 percent of the vote.
The candidates now face seven more
days of extended campaigning in a final
push to make their voices heard before
next Tiesday’s runoff election.
“I didn’t expect it to be that close,”
Peddycord said. “We were really looking
forward to who would win the office.”
Perry tried to lighten the air with a
more humorous outlook.
“I was looking forward to getting on
with my schoolwork,” he said.
With new procedures and guidelines
to follow for this stage of the game
such as the allotment of more campaign
funds from the Board of Elections the
candidates will spend the next week
working diligently to revamp their strat
egies and re-energize their platforms.
“I’ve just got a million things running
through my head,” Walker said.
Perry echoed his partner’s senti
ments. “Whit and I are taking this seri-
INSIDE
THIRD PARTY
Former Libertarian presidential
candidate speaks at UNC PAGE 4
www.dfhonline.com
STUDENT
AL/VJKJO ELECTIONS
JU
Madison Perry (left) and his opponents, Bobby Whisnant Jr. and Jenny Peddycord,
react to the announcement that there will be a runoff for senior class leadership.
SENIOR CLASS RESULTS
■ PERRY, WALKER
915 votes, 49.5935%*
■ WHISNANT, PEDDYCORD
914 votes, 49.5393%*
* denotes runoff candidates
ously, and we will continue to take it
seriously next week,” he said.
Taking a similar stance, Peddycord
expressed concern with the way that the
student body perceives class elections.
“I think people don’t take student
government seriously,” she said. “We’ve
done our research to know what the
office entails.”
Peddycord said the first words she
will utter to her campaign staff are
“quantity” and “quality.”
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“It’s an amazing feeling,” Dearmin said, amid
cheering supporters. “It’s a testament to the hard
working people of my campaign.”
Ballard was equally excited to hear the news. “I lost
all tact and class,” he said. “I just got up and screamed
with no inhibitions.”
With 7,264 votes, this election elicited the high
est turnout in campus history, said Heather Sidden,
chairwoman of the Board of Elections.
Despite his six endorsements, Jensen garnered
1,249 votes lB percent of the total placing him
in third. “I think the breadth of my endorsements
show I am a substantial candidate,” he said. “To some
extent I think this is a popularity contest.”
Jensen’s endorsements included UNC Young
SEE SBP, PAGE 4
m
... ■' '
DTH/JUSTIN SMITH
“We really need to reach out to the
community that hasn’t been reached,”
she said, noting the importance of gar
nering support and increasing recog
nition among groups that didn’t hear
about the Whisnant-Peddycord ticket.
“We have our heart totally in this
office,” she added.
Whisnant said he isn’t sure what
else the duo can do to persuade vot
ers. “What are we going to do that we
haven’t done so far?” he said.
But when it comes to determining
what new campaign efforts will entail,
Whisnant said he draws a blank.
“I think that’s what perplexes me,”
he said.
In the coming days, Whisnant said he
wants to bring his staff up to date and
SEE SENIOR CLASS, PAGE 4
SPORTS
CAMERON CRAZINESS
The No. 2 Tar Heels look to pass a major road
test and down their hated rivals PAGE 12
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2005
Johnson
coasts to
CAA win
Garners 72 percent of vote
in race against Holderness
BY ERIN ZUREICK
STAFF WRITER
After a year riddled by controversy and contention,
the Carolina Athletic Association has anew leader
waiting in the wings.
And though he’s been involved in the association
throughout the turbulence, he’s also got plans to
reform CAA from the
inside out.
CAA President
elect Justin Johnson
coasted to victory
Tuesday night, bring
ing in 4,414 votes
72 percent —of the
6,123 votes cast for
the office. His oppo
nent, Hayes Holderness, garnered 25 percent.
The race was more competitive than in the past, as
it was the first race in the last two years during which
more than one candidate campaigned for the position.
“I was anxious to get the election over with,” Johnson
said. “It’s been exhausting these last few weeks.”
Johnson gained support from campus organiza
tions early on in his campaign, receiving endorse-
SEE CAA, PAGE 4
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DTH/JUSTIN SMITH
Justin Johnson responds to the news of his victory
in the race for president of the Carolina Athletic
Association. Johnson won with 72 percent of the vote.
Wilson captures
RHA presidency
Takes 96 percent of votes
in race with no opponent
BY JACKI SPIES
STAFF WRITER
Chasity Wilson’s future looks bright as she prepares
to assume the role of president of UNC’s Residence
Hall Association.
Wilson officially became the president-elect of the
DTH/LAURA MORTON
association Tuesday night and will
step into the office April 5.
In what Heather Sidden, chair
woman of the Board of Elections,
referred to as one of the “cleanest
elections” in UNC history, 3,134
students cast a vote for the future
RHA president.
Wilson, who ran uncontested
in the election, won 3,001 of those
votes, or almost 96 percent.
“Not having any competition was the highlight of
my campaign,” she said. “It was a lot of fun. Everyone
said congratulations because they knew I was going
to win.”
Wilson said she is well-equipped for her new exec
utive role and is prepared to address the needs of the
University community.
“I feel like I know so many people, and I am in
touch with a lot of people, so it will be really easy for
me to figure out what the residents want,” she said.
Wilson now serves as the only underclassman on the
SEE RHA, PAGE 4
WEATHER
TODAY Showers, H 62, L 43
THURSDAY Partly cloudy, H 49, L 26
FRIDAY Sunny, H 49, L 26
CAA RESULTS
■ JUSTIN JOHNSON
4414 votes, 72%
■ HAYES HOLDERNESS
1558 votes, 25%
0
Chasity Wilson