College junior Natasha Menon and College junior Brian Goldstein will serve as the next president and vice president of the Undergraduate Assembly. (Photo by Simon Chen)
College junior Natasha Menon and College junior Brian Goldstein will serve as the next president and vice president of the Undergraduate Assembly, respectively, the Nominations and Elections Committee announced Thursday.
Menon won with 1,397 votes, a 47 vote margin of victory over Curry’s 1,350 votes. Menon’s running mate Goldstein won the vice presidential seat with 1,373 votes over presidential opponent Maria Curry’s running mate and College sophomore Chase Serota’s 1,323 votes.
"I’m actually speechless right now," Menon said. "I’m incredibly excited for the body next year, for this session. There are a lot of really incredible people on the UA, so I’m really excited that I’m able to facilitate their work."
Menon and Goldstein ran on a five-point platform, consisting of transparency, inclusivity, accessibility, wellness, and academics.
Some of their campaign promises include expanding Counseling and Psychological Services embedded models to community centers like the ARCH building or the Penn Women’s Center, creating more meeting space for cultural groups, and facilitating the club recruitment process by creating an online resource with information about all clubs on campus.
During the two presidential debates, Menon and Curry primarily agreed on their policy goals but clashed over what experience was necessary to serve as president. Curry touted her outsider status outside of the executive board, while Menon emphasized her experience serving on the executive board as the UA’s treasurer.
At the vice presidential debate, Goldstein similarly highlighted his two years of experience on the executive board — first as secretary, and currently as speaker — while Serota promised to bring a fresh perspective to the role.
At the first debate on Monday night, Curry alleged that the UA executive board used airport shuttle revenue for “inappropriate services” — food and alcohol for a UA social event. Menon and other executive board members, such as current UA President Michael Krone, said no violations occurred and said the event was necessary for the group’s cohesion.
The results for the rest of the UA and the Class Boards were also released Thursday night.
The 2020 Class Board will be led by Wharton junior Karim El Sewedy, and the 2021 Class Board will be led by College sophomore Lizzie Youshaei; both were incumbents who ran unopposed. College freshman Sam Strickberger won the 2022 Class Board presidential election. Incumbent College freshman Jonathan Scotto did not seek reelection.
The voting period opened Monday April 1 at 12 a.m. and closed on Thursday April 4 at 5 p.m. This election cycle saw several new NEC policies targeting coercive campaign practices and voter turnout.
Menon and Goldstein will be sworn into their new roles at the UA’s transition meeting on April 14, where the body will also elect their next speaker, treasurer, and secretary to round out the executive board.
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