WICHITA STATE’S STUDENT NEWS SOURCE SINCE 1896 MONDAY
Volume 125
www.thesunflower.com
April 5, 2021
Issue 22
Student Government Association voting open today through Wednesday BY LINDSAY SMITH editor@thesunflower.com / @Lindsay_KSmith
ILLUSTRATION BY THY VO / THE SUNFLOWER
Voting for this year’s Student Government Association elections begin today and are open through Wednesday. This year there is only one ticket running for the office of student body president and vice president. Last year, there were two. Current Student Body President Rija Khan won last year by 86 votes with running mate Mackenzie Haas. Khan is running again this year for the same office. This time, her running mate is SGA Senator Kamilah Gumbs. The ballot also includes college-specific, at-large, and special constituency senator spots. Last year only 8.4% of eligible
voters participated. In 2019, 16.2% voted and in 2018 12.3% voted.
FULL LIST OF CANDIDATES: Student Body President and Vice President: Rija Khan and Kamilah Gumbs The Office of Student Senator: College of engineering (4 seats): Jay Thompson, Aboubakar Diablo, Lizzie Koonce College of fine arts (2 seats): John Kirk, Jade Warden Graduate school (3 seats): No declared candidates Honors college (2 seats): Ella Brynne Ihrig, Jacob Tubach College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (7 seats): Mackenzie Lane, Bridget Kennedy, Kryslyn Sherer,
Thomas Rafter, Bayle Sandy College of Business (4 seats): Rexhd Martin College of Health Professions (3 seats): Olga Lesnik, David Liu Underserved Senator (8 seats): No declared candidates International students (2 seats): No declared candidates At-large (17 seats): Sheikh Md Sorwardi, Tayton Majors, Jordy Mosqueda, Ella Perkins, Dalton Dicks College of Applied Studies (4 seats): No declared candidates Out of state (2 seats): Nate Thomas Veteran Students (1 seat): No declared candidate Returning adults (3 seats): No declared candidate
PHOTOS BY LENA ALLHALAQ / THE SUNFLOWER
Above: Current Student Body President Rija Khan answers a question during a town hall Thursday, April 1. Khan is running for her second term as president. Right: SGA Senator Kamilah Gumbs speaks during the town hall Thursday. Gumbs currently serves as the diversity, empowerment, and inclusion chair and is running for her first term as student body vice president.
Khan and Gumbs discuss food insecurity and other campaign goals at town hall BY SEAN MARTY sports@thesunflower.com / @Theseanmarty
Student Government President and Vice President candidates Rija Khan and Kamilah Gumbs spoke at a town hall on Thursday, April 1 to discuss their campaign promises and goals. The event was held at the Rhatigan Student Center and was streamed to a virtual audience. Khan is running for her second term as student body president and has served in SGA since she was a freshman. Khan previously served as freshman senator and ways and means chair. Gumbs is in her first year as a senator for SGA and currently serves as the diversity,
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empowerment, and inclusion committee chair. Gumbs and Khan met during an american politics class. From there, they were able to build a bond through their similarities as international students. “From there we kind of clicked because we realized we were both not from the united states … our stories were different but similar in a sense,” Gumbs said. One of their main goals for next session is to address food insecurity. The problem of food insecurity is a problem that needs multiple solutions, Khan said. Khan signed an executive order creating a task force earlier this session. She said one task force
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“My background gives me the opportunity to ... stand out in the crowd a little bit. That way my voice is different, it’s unique.” KAMILAH GUMBS Student Body Vice President Candidate
wasn’t enough, so her and Gumbs are working to do more next year. “We personally believe that this issue is more so than just for our students, it affects our community @thesunflowernews
directly,” Khan said. “We know that the university is wanting to present changes, we want to make us the students present at the table to engage in those conversations, to present our ideas, and to further this goal of making sure that everyone has food or a plate.” Khan and Gumbs both said their international background helps them as leaders. Khan said that her background helps her to relate to students at a different level. “I’m a woman of color, I’m an asian immigrant to this country, I am also a muslim,” Khan said. “I carry these titles that make me the first in the student body president role. This position already has so
much that one requires. Like the amount of work, meetings, and everything else. But I believe when it comes down to the opportunities provided, I see my experience, myself as an individual, being able to empathise with other folks.” Gumbs said that her background has given her a louder voice that she can use to stand up for the underrepresented groups. “My background gives me the opportunity, I would say, to stand out in the crowd a little bit,” she said. “That way my voice is different, it’s unique, it’s allowed me to be a little louder in certain situations.” SGA election voting will take place April 5-7.