Hershey Avula '08 and Mondaire Jones '09 ran as ASSU insiders, talking up their experience in the Senate this year throughout the campaign. They have pledged to attend all the chamber’s committee meetings and work more closely with the Senate than their predecessors.

But the Senate that will be sworn in next month could be very different than the one they led this year.

The race for control of the 15-seat ASSU Senate was a tossup, with outsiders and freshmen performing more strongly than expected. Seven of the 13 Senate candidates endorsed by the moderate-to-right-leaning Stanford Review won election. Only six of this year’s winners were endorsed by the Student of Color Coalition (SOCC). This contrasts with last year's results, in which 10 of the 13 SOCC-endorsed Senate candidates won. Furthermore, none of the candidates endorsed by the Review were also endorsed by SOCC.

Luukas Ilves ’09, who is editor in chief of the Stanford Review, applauded the success of insurgent and independent Senate candidates.

"We picked candidates who are moderate, prudent and would make good senators," he said.

Sagar Doshi ’09, who was a member of the unopposed junior class executive slate THE PROFESSIO9ALS, was confident that candidates who got elected on platforms unsupportive of the ASSU would change their tune once sworn in.

“It’s very easy to have little idea of what the day-to-day stuff is, unless you’re actually there,” he said. “They’ll recognize what their role needs to be as part of the ASSU. It becomes a lot easier to get hold of.”

Several of the Senate candidates did not expect to pull off the victory.

Before results were announced, Sarah Golabek-Goldman '10 said she was nervous and had convinced herself that she wasn't going to win. Ten minutes later, she found out that she had been elected to the ASSU Senate.

"I just feel really lucky," she said. "There's so many people I want to call up now and thank, email and Facebook."

Jones said that his slate’s first priority was increasing the visibility of the ASSU as well as overseeing the completion of Old Union.

“We’ll hit the ground running,” Avula added.

These two initiatives are likely to be supported by the new Senate, as several candidates listed Old Union as a priority.

Departing ASSU president Elizabeth Heng ‘07 was optimistic about the transition process, saying she would try to impart the knowledge she had gained in her time on the ASSU.

“It will take the rest of the year,” Heng said, “But it shouldn’t be too hard. We work next door.”