In the aftermath of the Associated Students Inc. elections, which saw a changing of the guard in the presidency, candidate and Sen. Justin Contreras questioned the election process that lead to incumbent and victor Leen Almahdi’s win during Wednesday’s Senate meeting.
Almahdi garnered 50.98 percent of the vote while Contreras earned 49.02 percent, making the race for vice president the closest race this election cycle.
“There’s a few things I’m inquiring about regarding the race,” Contreras said. “There are some things going on that may not have been legitimate.”
Contreras declined to comment on what exactly he felt compromised the legitimacy of the election; however, he did remark on how close the race was.
“It was about 1 percent … about 72 votes,” he said. “There are still some things going on, some things I’m trying to figure out.”While Contreras did clarify that he does not think the election itself is illegitimate, he was still suspicious.
“There are some things that might have altered the results in a certain way,” he said. “But before I can verify that I’ll need to get all the details.”
Contreras confirmed that he is currently talking to administrators to make sure the election was not in error.
Almahdi was unaware of Contreras’ inquiry into the election.
“People can have their thoughts and opinions about what went down, that’s fine with me,” she said. “There’s always going to be people who believe that you don’t have the right to be in a position regardless of the work and effort you put to be here.”
Almahdi explained some interactions had made her feel unwelcome in her position.
“It’s not something that is uncommon for me, especially as a visibly presenting Muslim woman of color,” she said. “I have always been confronted with, ‘I don’t belong and this is not my space.’”
This comment may have been in reference to a recording last semester that picked up comments from a senator criticizing Almahdi’s faith-mandated prayer outside a meeting.
Almahdi said that she went into the election knowing that defeat was possible.
“I’m not the type to be like, ‘This is 100 percent solidified …’ I try to look at things objectively,” she said.
The next ASI Senate meeting will be April 10 at 3:30 p.m. in USU 234.
