The 32nd annual Election Convention took place on Monday, March 20. The convention decided the seven elected leaders of the 2023-2024 Associated Student Body (ASB) of UHS. Candidates were asked multiple rounds of questions and given 30 to 45 seconds to answer with student delegates voting at the end of each round. Unlike in previous years where two students from each homeroom were selected, student delegates were chosen from a pool of self-selected student delegates who expressed an interest in attending.

According to ASB Treasurer and Election Convention Coordinator senior Andrew Lim, the new delegate selection process was intended to ensure that delegates actually wanted to participate in the democratic process and would therefore be more likely to follow through with attending the event.

UHS Choir teacher Rob Blaney kicked off the convention with his rendition of the national anthem. The anthem was followed by the current ASB President senior Ryan Alavi, who stressed the idea of synergy, stating that each person on ASB works together to create an effect greater than themself. The day would not just be a win or loss but a celebration of each candidate’s determination to enrich UHS. Dr. Kevin Astor then spoke on how the Election Convention, UHS’ model democracy, helps delegates have a deeper analysis of who each candidate is which facilitates a better democratic process. 

Senior Council facilitated the voting process at the end of each round using Chromebooks. The result of the trial vote concluded that student delegates believe that pineapple does not belong on pizza.

In all rounds, candidates were given two prompts or questions. For the first round, candidates had 45 seconds to answer, and for all subsequent rounds 30 seconds.

The race for Student Activities Coordinator (SAC) involved junior Alec Apelian, junior Julia Murdock, sophomore Shubatmika Senthilkumar and freshman Sodongoo (Soto) Sodtuya. SAC candidates were asked to give a mock announcement and describe a new activity they would like to implement. The majority was met in round one. 

In round one, Spirit and Rally Commissioner candidates junior Ayden Agahi, junior Ariana Ahmad Shah and freshman Alessandra Priego were asked to describe how their personalities would help them as Spirit and Rally Commissioner and how they plan to expand and bridge the many different groups at UHS. The majority for the Spirit and Rally Commissioner position was also met in round one.

The battle for the Girls’ Sports Commissioner was fierce between junior candidates Riley Hertstein and Rowan Olson. They faced questions about how to advocate for opportunities and privileges for female athletes as well as how they would publicize girls’ sports. One of the convention’s most memorable questions was when current Girls’ Sports Commissioner and senior Sydney Gaw asked the candidates to name a song and explain how it reflected the energy they wanted to bring to the role. Herstein used the song “Family Ties” to describe the work, hype, and familial bond in girls’ sports. Olson suggested the song, “Good Old Days” to describe her hope that she brings a positive experience and positive energy to her role as Girl’s Sports Liaison. The majority was met in round two. 

The longest race of the day was for the Boy’s Sports Commissioner position between junior SangHyuk Im, sophomore Handersen Lee, sophomore Adrian Nguyen and junior Eithar Takesh. At the end of round one, Im was eliminated followed by Lee in round two. Nguyen and Takesh battled through rounds three and four, describing athletes of inspiration, previous experiences at games of the week and arguments advocating for girls’ sports. Between Nguyen’s thoughtful responses and Takesh’s energy and stage presence, the majority was met in round four. 

The Club’s Commissioner candidates junior Poorvi Kheni, junior Alex Liu, junior Antonia Park and sophomore Bruno Rodriguez Diaz discussed their goals as the club’s commissioner. Kheni was eliminated in round one. The remaining candidates gave pitches as to why someone should be a part of a club and how they would work out differences in their roles. The majority was met in round two.

For the position of Vice President, juniors Max Dreben and Ryan Shrivastava were locked in a stalemate until round three, when they were asked to talk about their best skill or talent, followed by what skill or talent they admire in their opponent.

Finally, the most anticipated role of President was in contention between junior Varin Gupta, junior Jesse Niedwick and junior Antonio Rodriguez Diaz. Niedwick was eliminated after round one where the three candidates discussed their philosophy for the role of president and how to act as a mediator in ASB. In rounds two and three, Gupta and Rodriguez Diaz shared a quote of the week for the audience with Gupta sharing JFK’s quote, “We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things. Not because they are easy, but because they are hard,” to describe the Trojan spirit of choosing to do the hard things in life. Rodriguez Diaz shared Benjamin Franklin’s quote, “Don’t put off until tomorrow what you can do today,” to encourage people to take initiative and be a doer. The majority was met at the end of round three. 

The elected seven for the 2022-2023 school year are Varin Gupta as President, Ryan Shrivastava as Vice President, Alec Apelian as SAC, Ayden Agahi as Spirit and Rally Commissioner, Riley Hertstein as Girls’ Sports Commissioner, Eithar Takesh as Boys’ Sports Commissioner and Bruno Rodriguez Diaz as Clubs Commissioner.