Jake Haston, junior in journalism, was elected the next president of Auburn's Student Government Association for the 2022-2023 academic year during election callouts held Friday night on the steps behind Cater Hall.
Jake Haston was one of three candidates. Joshua Quattlebaum, junior in finance and aviation management, and John David Matthews, junior in business administration, were the two other candidates running for SGA president.
Haston received 4,037 votes, or 52.61% of all votes cast for president; Matthews received 2,585 votes, or 33.69%; and Quattlebaum received 1,052 votes, or 13.71%.
“I’m feeling very grateful," Haston said. "This is definitely something that I never dreamed I’d be able to do. I’m just so excited to get to serve Auburn in this way. I’m really looking forward to giving back to all the people that supported me by following through on all of the stuff I want to work on and try to make Auburn an even better place.”
According to his platform, Haston aims to “advocate for the enhancement of four key areas on campus: academics, student life, SGA and social advancement.”
He also plans to advocate for an increase of loanable technology for students and an increase of accessibility of academic advisors for students.
Rett Waggoner, current SGA president, discussed his feelings towards leaving his current position.
“I’m excited and I’m proud of what our team has been able to do this year, and I know that next year they’ll be able to carry it on,” Waggoner said. “My biggest hope is that this team that was elected tonight and the team they build will be able to surpass anything we’ve ever accomplished. And I truly believe that all of those people will be able to do a great job in their roles.”
Waggoner also gave the winners advice on their new positions.
“You still have to go to class: that’s the first little bit of advice,” Waggoner said. “Just remember who got you here. Always be grateful for them and beyond that, just remember this University is something special and that the time you spend serving it, the hours you spend — late nights, early mornings — it’s all just to build into an impressive legacy that this University already holds.”
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My Ly, junior in journalism, is the news editor of The Plainsman.
