Robert Watkins was working even when he sat down.
Watkins, a Bowling Green senior, scoured the Hill for more than a week in search of supporters who would log on to TopNet and elect him president of the Student Government Association.
On Tuesday, the candidate took a seat next to his opponent, Berea junior Kara Ratliff, in a crowded Revolution 91.7 FM radio studio.
They were there to debate the issues, but they mostly joked around with the disc jockeys.
Now that Watkins has won, it’s time to get serious.
Watkins won the presidential race with 683 votes, with Ratliff garnering 659 votes. Results were announced this morning.
Marion sophomore Jeanne Johnson won executive vice president in an uncontested race with 1,203 votes, and Amanda Allen, a junior from Goodlettsville, Tenn., won administrative vice president in an uncontested race with 1,174 votes.
A total of 1,376 students voted in the elections.
Watkins was fairly mellow about his victory.
“I feel fine,” he said. “I had a good time running.” He said he looked forward to next year, but he was going to have a beer with his friends for the night.
Allen said it was a relief to have the office and to know what administration she would be working under.
Johnson said she was excited about her new position.
“I really need to sit down with Amanda and Rob,” she said. “We need to hit the ground running next semester.”
There were 22 senators elected to the 28 available seats.
Watkins’ win follows a week and a half’s worth of meeting with student organizations, drawing chalk messages on sidewalks and dispensing fliers and candy to anyone who would listen to the candidate.
The search for eager listeners led Watkins to the basement of Wesleyan Foundation on College Street on April 6, pitching his goals if elected to lead SGA.
“I generally try to keep it brief because if people are interested, they’ll ask questions,” he said. “But if they’re not, I don’t want to waste anyone’s time.”
Watkins wants to increase the amount of organizational aid SGA gives to student groups. He would like to improve the Provide-A-Ride system, which are vehicles that pick up students who need a ride.
He also wants to raise student awareness of SGA activities and the state budget.
This is the speech, more or less, that Watkins gave to organizations and classes on his campaign trail.
He met with about 25 student organizations, and talked to about 10 classes.
“It’s been fun,” he said of talking to students. “I suggest it to anyone who doesn’t have anything better to do.”
On Tuesday, Watkins interrupted his fun and sat his backpack and a bucket of candy down at a table in the Downing University Center. He had just finished handing out fliers and candy to the steady lunch crowd and hurriedly told them what he wanted to accomplish as SGA president.
“I don’t know if I’m making any sort of impact at all,” he said.
Students who stopped and listened seemed enthusiastic and curious.
Then there are the students who don’t know what SGA is.
He’s only run into a few of those people during his trek to the presidency.
A lunch break at the DUC Food Court came after an hour of passing out fliers on campus.
He hadn’t eaten since 6:30 that morning. It was about 1 p.m.
A day later, Watkins sat filling his stomach with pizza while waiting for the results of the election in the SGA office. He said he wasn’t feeling really nervous.
“I did what I can do,” he said.
But Watkins now has a list of things he needs to do. He said he would start planning his presidency today, prioritizing things and setting up an agenda.
He said he will also meet with Johnson and Allen to start working on plans for the upcoming year.
Watkins will also have meetings with the outgoing president, Radcliff senior Katie Dawson. She said she will have transitional meetings with him and the new and old appointed staffs.
“It was close, it was very close,” Dawson said of the election. “Each candidate ran a very thorough campaign.”
Herald reporter Katie Brandenburg contributed to this story.
Reach Kelly Richardson
at news@wkuherald.com.
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