On November 29th, the results of the 57th General Students’ Association (GSA) election were announced, with Candidate Group No. 1, Around Us, winning the election. Main candidate Choi Su-In (Dept. of English Language and Literature, 20) and deputy candidate Kang Jun-Seo (Dept. of Biological Sciences, 22), the Around Us team won with 40.03% of the votes and will lead the GSA in 2025. The election period was extended by one day, with 9,202 of 17,667 eligible voters participating, achieving a turnout of 52.09%.

This election, extended by one day due to low voter turnout, was finalized with a 52% turnout, successfully meeting the majority voter participation threshold without being canceled. Around Us garnered 3,684 votes (40.03%), while their competitor, TaeSan, received 3,115 votes (33.85%). The gap between the two candidates was 569 votes (6.19 %P). Notably, this election marked the introduction of invalid votes for the first time, leading to a significant decline in candidate support compared to the election of 2023. This left Around Us with a support rate of just 20.85% of all eligible voters, compared to last year’s P:New, which secured 34% (6,365 votes) of the eligible voter base.

Main candidate Choi Su-In expressed her gratitude, saying, “Throughout the past month of campaigning, I wanted to present my best self, but my inexperience and lack of knowledge sometimes showed through. By preparing thoroughly until the term begins, I aim to demonstrate only the best as the GSA leadership.” She also pledged to fulfill her campaign promise to “bring happiness over the next year.”

◾New College Councils for 2025 Also Elected, But One Remains Vacant

The student councils for 11 colleges, the Club Association’s president, and the student councils for the Graduate School of Dentistry undergraduate course were also elected to lead the student society for the 2025 academic year. In this election, the president was elected  in 13 out of 18 units, including 15 colleges, Club Association, Graduate School of Dentistry undergraduate course. However, the College of Natural Resources and Life Science, School of Medicine, and College of Arts lacked candidates, while the College of Humanities failed to meet the required voter majority. The election consisted of three contested elections and 11 uncontested elections. 

In the contested election, results were finalized in two units. Contested elections were held at College of Education, College of Humanities, Club Association. Among these, the College of Humanities failed to exceed the 50% voter turnout. In the College of Education, Candidate Group No. 2, BEAT, won with 47.71%. And in the Club Association, Candidate Group No. 1, Dongari Village, won decisively with 76.09%.

All 11 uncontested elections saw their candidates elected without surprises. Uncontested candidates needed a majority of eligible votes and approval from over half of participating voters. The vote percentages were as follows College of Nursing “LumiNurs” (76.97%), College of Business Administration “Mulgyeol” (89.21%), College of Economics and International Trade “Saebit” (88.89%), College of Engineering “Kibaek” (84.8%), College of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology “Narae” (93.29%), College of Social Sciences “PUZZL:E” (94.42%), College of Human Ecology “DREAM” (91.14%), College of Pharmacy “Gongmyeong” (78.17%), College of Natural Sciences “START” (87.57%), College of Information and Biomedical Engineering “JUSTICE” (89.31%), and Graduate School of Dentistry undergraduate course “Hanul” (94.67%).

The College of Information and Biomedical Engineering, despite a voter turnout of only 38.02%, elected its representative under revised rules. On November 12th, the student council announced via social media a rule change lowering the voter majority requirement from over 50% to one-third of eligible voters. After its establishment in 2020, the College of Information and Biomedical Engineering, which previously had no candidates for student council elections, formed its first student council in 2023.

Reporter Lim Seung-Ha

Translated by Seo Yoo-Jung