The era of COVID-19 regulations and mask mandates is coming to a close at UNCW along with the terms of UNCW’s current Student Government Associate president and vice president. SGA is holding its annual student body elections now until 3 p.m. today.

Hannah Horwitz and Sadie Williams are running unopposed for president and vice president respectively to lead us through these recent changes and into a new era at UNCW. In a press release and on their Instagram, Horwitz Williams stated that they are looking to increase communication and collaboration with student organizations and the campus community to better support their needs. The candidates emphasize eliminating the disconnect between SGA and the student body while also pushing to increase on-campus employment benefits and paid leadership opportunities for students. Finally, Horowitz and Williams prioritize enhancing campus safety and student health in order to help every student find their sense of belonging on campus.

Horwitz currently serves as the SGA chief of staff. She has also been involved with Residence Hall Association, Transition Programs, Student Leadership Advisory Council, The Seahawk newspaper, UNCW Votes and other leadership positions throughout her time at UNCW. She has also worked with the UNC system on the Mental Health First Aid project as well as the improvement of people of color’s representation in counseling.

Sadie Williams is SGA’s current president and has previously held the positions of freshman class senator, sophomore class president and external affairs chair with SGA. She is also a member of Phi Mu Fraternity where she served as the junior executive of parents weekend chair and on the executive boards as vice president of operations. She is also part of the Randall Library Advisory Board and the Campus Conduct Board through the Office of the Dean of Students.

While Horowitz and Williams run officially unopposed, there are other write-in campaigns challenging the frontrunners. Jeremy Lee and Ashley Jackson announced their campaign on Instagram last week. Their campaign prioritizes increasing on-campus dining hours and accessibility, repairing cracks in the campus’s sidewalks, granting access to course syllabi during class registration and increasing reverse osmosis water stations on campus.

The polls will be open on Wavelink until 3 p.m. on Thursday, March 24.