Glanzer, Nielson win BYU primary election

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    By Benjamin Carter

    France Nielson led the candidates for BYUSA president in the primary election results announced Friday, Feb. 6, in the Terrace of the Wilkinson Student Center.

    Nielson and his running mate, Greg Moody, received 1,256 votes, while Sam Glanzer and Kim Gardner received 1,240 votes.

    Tyson Taylor and Tyler Ruby received 713 votes, but did not receive enough votes to move on to the final election next week. Sarah Stevenson and Bryce Porter were disqualified Thursday for violating election rules.

    Gardner said she expects a close race in the finals. Only 16 votes separated Glanzer and Gardner from Nielson and Moody.

    “We”re excited to be in [the race] with France and Greg, they”re really great guys,” Gardner said.

    Voting in the final election between Glanzer and Nielson will begin Wednesday and will end Friday. Current BYUSA president Dave Johnson will announce the results Friday night in the Terrace. Johnson said he expects voter turnout to double in the final election.

    “I wouldn”t be surprised if it [voter turnout] cleared 6,000 this year,” Johnson said. “You”ve got two strong candidates that appeal to diverse groups, and it would not surprise me at all to see those numbers go well above six or seven thousand.”

    Now that they are out of the race, Taylor and Ruby plan to support Glanzer and Gardner.

    “We support Sam and Kim, with 100 percent,” Taylor said.

    Glanzer expressed appreciation for the support, as well as excitement for the next phase of the campaign. Lead candidate Nielson said he and Moody had a positive experience in the primary election and are excited about the finals.

    “We really want [voters] to focus on our leadership and experience in the past,” Nielson said. He said he also wants voters to consider his campaign”s “Take a Cougar to Lunch” program, one of the few unique campaign issues this year.

    Students will vote in the finals on Route Y, as they did in the primary election. The winners will start their new positions in April 2004 when Johnson”s term is up, and will serve until April 2005. Johnson said he is optimistic about the finals.

    “This is exciting; it”s going to be fun to see how this plays out for next Friday when we find out who our new student body president is,” Johnson said.

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