The top three SGA candidates - president, vice president and treasurer - will run unopposed in the 2015 SGA elections for the first time in at least 10 years, according to Brad Smith, SGA adviser.
Logan Powell, current SGA president, said he was not happy with the lack of competition.
"We would like there to be competition, if nothing else than for the sharpening of ideas, and the fact that when you have to compete against someone's platform, it typically elevates yours," Powell said. "I think that these three guys are a good trio to run because I think they'll meet those expectations. Hopefully moving forward, this doesn't ever happen again."
Walker Byrd, Justin Mathews and Brett Walton will run for SGA president, vice president and treasurer, respectively.
According to SGA Code of Laws, "Unless disqualified, the candidate who received the most votes for SGA president, SGA vice president and SGA treasurer, respectively, will be certified as elected, provided that he/she obtain[s] 40 percent or more of the votes cast in their respective elections."
Since there are no write-in options for any race, according to the SGA Code of Laws, all candidates only need one vote to win the election.
"We do stick to the code," said Sloane Bell, executive director of elections. "It's our bread and butter, and we go by what it says. If a senator were to sponsor a bill to call for (write-in) change, it would have to be voted on by the student senate."
In the 2014 SGA elections, only Richmond Gunter, current SGA treasurer, ran unopposed.
"It's a totally different experience," Gunter said. "You get to do all the fun things and don't have to do the not fun things during the campaign. I didn't change a ton of things [in my campaign process], but I was able to say this wasn't a necessary component in campaigning."
Bell said the elections council put out fliers, posted on social media and had multiple information sessions for both major and minor candidates in the fall to promote the elections.
"I made my team aware that the only applications we got for those [races] were one candidate per race," Bell said.
"As a whole, we always encourage as many people as possible to run, and that's why my team really tried to promote this year. Not only letting students know how important these positions are, but how important voting is."
All top three candidates have been involved with SGA in the past.
One candidate for vice president, John LeMaster, senior in chemical engineering, withdrew his SGA application in the fall.
LeMaster said his reason for withdrawal was personal and had no further comment.
With no one running against any of the candidates, Gunter said the campaign process is more focused on future plans than getting students to vote for a certain candidate.
Byrd, senior in finance, said his campaign would not be in students' faces on the concourse.
"We are still trying to make people aware of what's going on and make sure they understand that they have a voice through this and they can still vote," Byrd said. "Even though all three races are unopposed, (students) still have a purpose in this whole plan. So we are really just trying to convey that message and make sure we meet students and hear their concerns over this next week."
Byrd said he thinks he would be a good represenative of the student body.
"I'm not doing this because of any resume, I'm not doing this because I'm trying to climb the ladder or get the next nametag," Byrd said. "I'm doing this because I love Auburn, and I know that's cliche to say, but I do."
A new addition to the ballot Byrd implemented will be the choice between three dining venues that will be a part of the new Mell Street Academic Success Center.
The three options are Plains to Plate, Einstein's Bagels and Mell Street Cafe.
Justin Mathews, junior in building science, said he was surprised when he found out he was running unopposed.
"Obviously, that's not the way I wanted to win," Mathews said. "I was really looking forward to campaigning. I love the elections process, and I think that's how people need to be put into positions. At the same time, I was extremely excited for this year to come."
Mathews said running unopposed gives him the chance to focus on his position and how he will implement his platform once he is sworn into office.
Brett Walton, junior in accounting, said he is focusing on quality of votes over quantity of votes.
"We can interact with students on a more personal level," Walton said. "You aren't feeling rushed to go talk to the next person, to get that next vote or to be as loud as you can on the concourse."
Byrd, Mathews and Walton's campaigns are detailed on A3.
Additional reporting contributed by Nicole Fulkerson, campus reporter.
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