According to a recent poll conducted by “Young Puns”, a political commentary show on MERCER 99, and The Cluster, Sophomore Senator Dalton Turner currently leads fellow Sophomore Senator Mollie Davis by six percent as a potential SGA presidential candidate. The poll was conducted between Feb. 2 and Feb. 14, and its full results show Turner receiving 34 percent, Davis receiving 28 percent, Junior Senator Khoi Le receiving 15 percent and Junior Senator Austin Thompson and Freshman Senator Akeme Ubom rounding out the poll with eleven percent.
Senator Turner’s strongest support comes from underclassmen. In the Young Puns/The Cluster Poll (YPP), Turner was supported by 48 percent of the underclassmen participants, and Davis came in a distant second with 18 percent support from underclassmen participants.
This may prove vital for the upcoming election as more underclassmen live on campus than any other age group. Since voting for president occurs currently on one day only and only one poll is opened from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the Connell Student Center, a strong correlation can be made that underclassmen are more likely to vote than upperclassmen.
In gender groups, Turner also performed well among female participants as 38 percent of the group chose Turner. He performed particularly well among female white voters, who supported Turner with 44 percent. Davis also performed well among females, gaining the second highest support with 32 percent. Turner also has more support with males as he received 30 percent to Davis’ 23 percent from male participants in the poll.
Similarly, Turner performed well with white voters. Turner received 43 percent of students who recognized themselves as white, while Davis received 36 percent. No other candidate received more than eight percent of the remaining vote among white students.
While none of the candidates in this poll have formally announced their candidacy for SGA President, they are widely recognized as candidates who may seriously run for office. No one will know for sure who is running until qualification day.
Early polling shows Turner in lead for SGA Presidential race
