Editor’s Note: The story has been updated to reflect that Rhoda Hoods served as Boca Raton campus Governor for the 2021-22 academic year, not the Fall 2021 semester.

The unofficial Student Government election results are in: the FAU community voted to approve all seven amendments that were on the ballot, and Rhoda Hoods and Kaila Palmer won their seats in the Boca Raton Senate.

A total of 504 students voted in the election, a decrease from the 555 votes in the Fall 2021 election.

The Boca Raton campus saw an improvement in turnout, going from 298 votes last fall to 386 this semester. This also marks a 29.53% rise from the Fall 2020 semester for participation from the campus’ student body.

Amendments

With the student body agreeing on all seven amendments, the legislation now heads to Vice President of Student Affairs Larry Faerman for approval.

Of the amendments, students heavily favored Amendment 1 with an 83.1% approval rate. This will put a maximum limit of 50 members who can serve in the House of Representatives on their respective campuses.

Amendment 5 had the least approval of the amendments students voted on, with 73.2% of them voting “Yes.” This legislation intends to expand the Student Court, which represents the judicial branch of Student Government, from four justices to five.

Despite 81.5% of students approving it, Amendment 6 had the most “No” votes with 108. This amendment will allow SG members to serve on advisory boards and internal committees.

Boca Raton Senate 

Hoods and Palmer celebrated their election victories Thursday, ranking in the top two for the Boca Raton Senate. Isabella Hickey, a graduate student majoring in public administration, also won a senate seat with 164 votes.

“I am truly honored and humbled to once again be able to represent the students of our wonderful university,” said Hoods, a senior majoring in elementary education who also served as Boca Governor during the 2021-22 academic year. “I am very excited for what this year and great senatorship will bring.”

Palmer, who ran as a vice presidential candidate alongside presidential candidate Lily MacDonald for the Spring 2022 election, thanked everyone who participated in the election and those who voted for her.

“I am so excited to serve as a senator once again,” Palmer said. “I’m looking forward to working closely with members of the [President’s Administrative Cabinet], and most importantly [Registered Student Organizations], to create events or promote discounts that students would love.”

Richard Pereira is the News Editor for the University Press. For information regarding this or other stories, email [email protected] or tweet him @Rich26Pereira.