Penn Dems elect new president in close race | With audio

Listen to part of reporter Colin Kavanaugh's interview with new Penn Dems President Jordan Levine.

In a remarkably close election, the Penn Democrats has elected College sophomore Jordan Levine as its next president.

Following the overwhelming student involvement in Penn Dems this fall, the group's elections, which were held last night, were unusually contested.

The group met in Huntsman Hall to select its new executive board, with approximately 50 of the organization's members voting.

According to the outgoing president, College junior Lauren Burdette, both Levine and his opponent, Penn for Obama president and Wharton sophomore Michael Stratton, "campaigned heavily" for the position before the meeting.

Stratton later placed his name in the running for vice president, which he won in a three-way race.

Burdette said the interest in this year's board was due to increased involvement within the group following the national presidential election.

Voting eligibility was based on attendance at no fewer than two events during the election season.

For Levine, a former Daily Pennsylvanian advertising representative, next year's focus will be laying the groundwork for the gubernatorial and senatorial elections in 2010.

In an interview after the meeting, Levine said that in order to be prepared for those elections, maintaining student involvement in the group must be a priority.

"We will try as hard as we can to bring big-name politicians to campus, as a way to keep people involved in non-election years," he said.

However, Levine recognized the challenges the group faced attracting high-profile speakers to campus without Student Activities Committee funding. Currently, the University does not authorize funding for groups with political ties, an issue the Undergraduate Assembly and SAC have attempted to change.

"Right now, we have no funding from the school," Levine said, adding that the outgoing vice president, College junior Mukul Sharma, will be encouraged to continue his work to solidify funding.

In establishing an effective grassroots network for 2010 - and expanding on the one in place from the election - Levine does not want to wait until the election year to get things moving.

"We'll make an effort to reach out to campaigns right when they declare," Levine said.

He added that he will encourage students to get involved with a range of 2010 campaigns early on, and would handle potential Democratic primary endorsements on a "case-by-case basis."

But in the meantime, Levine and the new board will focus on getting students to the presidential inauguration on Jan. 20.

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