By Travis DeNeal and Kirk Mottram

Undergraduate Student Government Sen. Mike Ruta won the student trustee race Wednesday amid charges of election judge misconduct at the Trueblood Hall polling place.

Student Trustee Election Commission determined that Ruta bested rival Bob Hanfland by a wide, 500 vote margin of 1111 to 607. Ruta, a two-time senator from the College of Applied Sciences, garnered 65 percent of the vote. Hanfland, a virtual unknown in student government, received 35 percent.

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Ballot counting began nearly an hour late because the USG and student trustee election commissions did not have a room reserved. Consequently, members of the commissions and proxies, sent by each candidate with the exception of Hanfland, carried ballot boxes from room to room and floor to floor of the Student Center until they landed in an extension of the dining area on the south end of the building.

Although Ruta has claimed victory in the relatively high-turnout student trustee election, allegations have been forwarded by a poll watcher and another witness that an election judge at Trueblood Hall improperly influenced voters in favor of Ruta.

USG Election Commissioner Mindy Scott said she found no evidence that any Trueblood Hall election judge had influenced voters in favor of Ruta. However, Carla Lunsford, wife of former USG senator and Students Organized Against the Athletic Fee Increase spokesman Chet Lunsford, alleged that Trueblood Hall election judge Brian Spears was influencing voters to vote for Ruta.

It appalls me, she said. I think Trueblood should be disqualified. There were too many mistakes. It was run unprofessionally and I really don’t approve.

Lunsford said she witnessed seven violations, including allegedly hearing election judge Brian Spears tell voters, both after being asked and voluntarily, that Mike Ruta was endorsed by the Progress Party. She also allegedly saw Spears forward various names to voters for write-in student trustee candidates.

During the ballot count, one ballot contained one of those names.

Lunsford also says she witnessed judges allow advertising at the tables while voters were casting their ballots. In addition, the Shakedown Party poll-watcher saw one election judge tell a voter to vote for the Progress Party. Finally, Lunsford alleges that Spears and his partner were distributing Brush Towers ballots to Neely Hall residents. Lunsford said this continued until a voter told the election judge that Neely Hall is in fact part of University Park.

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Willis Reynolds, a Shakedown party candidate, was present during one hour of Lunsford’s poll-watching and says he also witnessed Spears telling voters that Ruta was endorsed by the Progress Party. He also said that Brush Towers ballots were given to Neely Hall residents.

Under election rules election judges cannot be affiliated with any party and cannot influence voters. Student trustee candidates cannot be on a party ticket.

Spears says he did not try to influence voters for Ruta and was surprised and angered by the allegations.

I never said to vote for him (Ruta), he said. In fact, I didn’t vote for him. I never, whatsoever influenced voters, and I’m very upset about this whole thing.

Spears said he was working as an election judge as part of a community service requirement as a Delta Sigma Phi pledge. He also said that he did answer a question from a student asking why no party affiliation was listed with trustee candidates on the ballot. He said he responded that the trustee candidates were not officially part of any party.

In addition, Spears said, he was baited by three unidentified women who asked him who they should vote for. Spears said he did not respond to the questions.