PJ Alampi’s expression never changed.

That was enough for the nearly two-dozen people gathered in a South Campus apartment to understand that the phone call had not brought good news. Still, they waited, bracing themselves for the inevitable.

“Can you tell me who came in first?” Alampi asked the caller.

Alampi had come in second in the race for Student Association president, losing to current-Vice President Allie Curtis by 7.2 percent of the vote.

Curtis received 29.7 percent, or 1,221 votes, while Alampi’s second place finished netted him 22.8 percent, or 937 votes.  Kyle Coleman came in third with 21.8 percent, or 896 votes and Iggy Nava finished last with 18.8 percent, or 773 votes.

After receiving the phone call, Alampi immediately left the apartment. He returned a few minutes later after talking to his campaign staff outside.

“I will continue to represent the students,” he said. “The students have had an opportunity to speak their mind and give their opinion on the election and I felt they had their choice today and that’s what they did.”

The junior film major from Glen Ridge, N.J. has been a member of SA since his freshman year and currently serves as chair of the Student Life Committee. He previously served as chair of the Board of Elections and Membership.

Alampi’s platform, “Connecting Cuse,” involved working closer with student organizations, enhancing study spaces on campus and improving SU’s wireless printing system.

In the end, Alampi said the focus of his campaign was on students and what their needs were and that the election hasn’t changed that.

“I wasn’t too sure exactly what was going to happen and I felt that, in the end, regardless of what the result was, I was going to continue with whatever I was going to do,” he said.

While Alampi said he’s not sure what the future holds, he knows he will continue to stand for the students.

“No matter what that is I’m really looking forward to representing the student organizations on campus because that’s what my focus was,” he said.

He congratulated Nava and Coleman on running great campaigns and said he planned to call all the other candidates in the morning to check up on them and learn their status.

“Kyle’s run an amazing race and Iggy has too and I think those two gentlemen have done an amazing job with this election,” he said. “When it comes down to it I look forward to seeing what those two guys do, both in student government and in the university.”

One of the bright spots of the night for Alampi was learning that Stephen DeSalvo had been re-elected as comptroller.

“He won?” Alampi exclaimed when told the news. “Thank God!”

Alampi added that Pat-Osagie is a “very nice kid” and can do amazing things as a SA representative and member of the finance board, but said DeSalvo has done a phenomenal job “protecting the student fee” and fairly allocating money to student organizations.

Looking back on his campaign, Alampi said he will most remember walking around campus and hearing people shouting “PJ for Prez!” at him.

“It really shows you the power of branding,” he said with a laugh, looking around at the bright orange campaign posters hanging on the walls of the apartment.

But the focus of his campaign remained on talking with students and hearing their concerns. This continued right up to the last minutes before the polls closed as Alampi and his campaign team traveled to south campus to wait for the results.

“We knew this was the way we wanted to go out; sitting in a circle on a bus riding to South talking to students,” he said. “That’s what this has been all about.”

 

Published on November 16, 2012 at 2:25 am

Contact Jessica: [email protected] | @JessicaIannetta