Presidential candidates were officially nominated last night in the first meeting of the newly-elected Tufts Community Union (TCU) Senate.
Junior Brandon Rattiner and sophomores Chas Morrison and Samia Zahran officially accepted the nominations, which had to be initiated and seconded by two senators for each candidate. The newly elected senators and community representatives voted to approve the nominations, which were largely expected.
"Everything went perfectly as planned," Elections Commission (ECOM) Chair Adam Weldai said. "This is a very different kind of meeting because it's not necessarily a meeting to support a candidate in particular, but it's just supporting these courageous individuals and their right to run for the presidency."
Junior Antonella Scarano and sophomore Sam Wallis were also nominated by senators but declined to accept the offers. Informal nominations like these are often made as a sign of respect, Weldai said.
The formal nominations allow the senators to officially unleash their campaigns.
"There were already Facebook[.com profiles] up and posters by the time we were out the door," said Weldai, a senior.
Both Morrison and Rattiner launched their campaign Web sites immediately after the meeting's conclusion.
The candidates told the Daily after the meeting that they were excited for their nominations and to begin campaigning for the election.
"It feels good," Zahran said. "I'm really excited to get out and meet people."
Rattiner echoed Zahran's sentiments. "I'm very excited that the TCU Senate entrusts me and has given me the opportunity to represent the student body at large," he said. "It's a really special opportunity and something I hope will be equally special for the campus."
Morrison said that he was looking forward to the campaign. "The campaign is going to be a great discussion and debate," he said.
After the nominations meeting, which was open to the public, the three presidential candidates had a private meeting with ECOM to discuss presidential procedures and rules.
