UF’s Student Senate elected Smith Meyers as the new Senate president Tuesday night.
Meyers (Impact, District A) ran unopposed and was unanimously approved as Senate president during the second of Senate’s back-to-back meetings.
“As Senate president, I will never stop working alongside each and every one of you to grow the Student Body,” Meyers told senators before he was approved.
Meyers, who was re-elected into Senate after winning his seat in the Fall elections, previously served as Senate president pro-tempore. Austin Champoux (Impact, District A), who also won his seat in the Fall elections, was elected Senate president pro-tempore. Senate also verified last week’s election results and welcomed new senators into the chamber.
Champoux said he would work to reach out to more students to apply for replacement seats.
“I want to make sure the most and best-qualified applicants are in the Senate,” he said.
During the first meeting, former Access Party President Praveen Varanasi let out a single “nay” when the senator voted to verify the election results. When UF supervisor of elections Eric Hobbs gave his report on the election results, Varanasi questioned him regarding the Beaty Towers election.
“How do you feel about the fact people were escorting people to the polls?” Varanasi asked, referencing an election complaint submitted by Edward Zambrano, a volunteer with independent candidate Jeremy O’Brien Murillo’s campaign.
Because O’Brien Murillo lost the Beaty Towers election by six votes, Varanasi said he didn’t feel comfortable verifying the results.
“I think it was important that somebody said something,” he said. “In an election with six votes, that can cause a significant influence.”
The results were eventually approved unanimously by Senate.
Departing senators gave goodbye speeches, thanking other senators from across the aisle for participating in SG. Jenny Clements, who finished her term serving as Senate president, was also unanimously approved as an alternative for the local fee committee.
During the second meeting, student senators who won seats in the Fall election were inducted into Senate.
The new senators stood, raised their right hands and vowed to uphold the U.S., UF and state constitutions.
During public debate, Ford Dwyer (Access, Law) said he was elected by Access Party to serve as the party’s leader in Senate.
“Though we may not always agree on every issue on every day, I pledge to you that I will criticize ideas but not who we are as people,” he said.
UF Student Body President Smith Meyers
