Get to know the Benedict 2017 executive ticket for Tempe Undergraduate Student Government. Brittany Benedict, a business junior, is the presidential candidate. Benedict is joined by Kelsey Wilson, a political science junior running for Vice President of Policy and Lester Nnagbo, a criminal justice junior running for Vice President of Services.
What are some of your platform and policy positions?
Brittany Benedict: "I think a really important one is, we have a sexual health one."
"This is bridging the gap between sexual violence and sexual health."
"We think that this is the foundation for sexual assault prevention and by understanding these we have the power to positively affect intimacy on our campus."
"We want to create a director position, the 'Director of Intimate Initiatives,' this director will work with other organizations that have the knowledge, base and resources on the topics such as sexual violence and sexual health."
Kelsey Wilson: "Another really important one for us is we understand that for many Sun Devils their pursuit of their higher education doesn’t stop with their undergraduate degree, for that reason we would like to offer one free LSAT, MCAT and GRE during the academic year."
"We don’t want the financial burdens of these tests to be the reason that a Sun Devil doesn’t go on to live their life and career to their fullest."
Lester Nnagbo: "I think one of our other main points would most likely be improving game day experience. Just really trying to bring back more interactive ways for our students to enjoy staying at the game."
"We understand a lot of students tend to leave about halftime."
"With everything going on at the stadium and all the improvements they’re making, we do believe that we have the prime opportunity to bring a lot of kids back to our home games."
We are so excited to share our ideas and visions with you all! To stay updated and learn more about the Benedict ticket, follow our pages!
— Benedict 2017 (@votebenedict17) March 14, 2017
Why are you qualified to run for the offices you seek?
BB: "I was my chapter president for my sorority so I can work with large groups of people, I know how to conduct business, I know what’s appropriate and what’s not."
"Being in the different organizations I have, I’ve had a chance to listen to what people have to say."
"(As president) you definitely are in a position where you are doing what they want and you have to put away your own thoughts because you’re representing the student body rather than just your own thoughts."
KW: "All of my work experience has been non-partisan, I think that’s really unique to bring to that office."
"I’ve never worked on somebody’s own personal political campaign. I’ve never advocated for a certain party for X,Y and Z reason."
"I really have done all of my work with the idea that when people form different backgrounds come to the table, the best solutions can be made."
LN: "My interactions with USG as whole have definitely brought me to a comfortable place where I feel like I could take that position knowing what each position should do."
"Personally, I’m always down to email you back, always down to have a one-on-one, to meet with an organization regardless of what I think I can do for them."
"I think that’s what a VP (of Services) should be able to do, is really help organize their directors and keep those organizations happy with their directors as well."
What motivated you to run for office and how was this ticket put together?
BB: "I’ve always been involved in an organization growing up throughout high school and college."
"I really thought ‘I can make a difference in this campus,’ and I have, alongside my team, we have some really great ideas and we’re very passionate about the student body and every single thing we do we put 110 percent in."
KW: "I think for us, when we had our first initial meeting as a team was really about ‘Why are we doing this?’”
"When we came together it was really ‘what can we do and how can we do it that it affects more students than USG’s typical realm of influence.’"
LN: "Brittany and Kelsey approached me about this opportunity, after meeting with them and talking about the platforms we want to push out and the ideas we had for the next ear, we just got so much more and more excited."
Read More: Everything you need to know about USG elections, a voter guide
Correction: Lester Nnagbo's name was misspelled. The article has been updated to reflect the changes.
Reach the reporter at maatenci@asu.edu or follow @mitchellatencio on Twitter.
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