The neon shirts are packed into boxes, the tents are taken down and the extra fliers have been recycled. ASUO elections are over and University junior Laura Hinman is the president-elect.
The 21-year-old from California is a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma, loves Diet Coke and never seems to stop moving. When she is excited about something she talks so quickly that her words seem to blend together. Her sweeping hand motions while telling a story command attention. @@http://asuo.uoregon.edu/senate.php?a=30@@
After three grueling weeks, and too much “country music, Ke$ha and Diet Coke,” Hinman is ready to move forward and start her term.
Her eyes always widen when she talks about athletic tickets or the EMU renovation, and she repeatedly pushes her long brown hair over her shoulder.
“We planned for months,” Hinman said. “During spring break, the whole campaign staff slept at my house for like five days straight, just getting ready. There were a lot of Dutch Bros., Red Bull-infused nights.”
It is well-known that Hinman is obsessed with Diet Coke and anytime she would start to get stressed, someone would bring her the drink to calm her. When she is tired or concerned, Hinman’s almond-shaped eyes droop slightly at the corners, so her team immediately knows when she needs a pick-me-up.
“Nothing brings people closer than an experience like this one,” Hinman said.
She chuckled as she said the theme song for the campaign became Calvin Harris’ “Feel So Close.”
ASUO Sen. Bri Woodside-Gomez, who has known Hinman for three years, couldn’t be more excited about her friend’s success. The pair lived in the same residence hall but became closer when they joined ASUO. @@http://asuo.uoregon.edu/senate.php?a=30@@
They were the only two freshman on a previous ASUO campaign and were often sent out to campaign together.
“Since our houses were right next to each other, we would walk to and from senate every day,” said Woodside-Gomez, who is a member of Chi Omega. “We would talk about everything on those walks.”
On one of their Wednesday night walks, Woodside-Gomez asked Hinman to be a bridesmaid in her upcoming wedding. Teary-eyed, Hinman accepted.
“She is such a good listener and really cares,” Woodside-Gomez said. “I knew she was someone I wanted there.”
Although Woodside-Gomez didn’t help with the We Are Oregon campaign, she was supportive of Hinman and believes she is the right one for the job.
“Unlike some other candidates, Laura doesn’t have a campaign face,” Woodside-Gomez said. “She just loves life and puts everything she has into everything she does. She is going to make changes that affect the everyday student.”
Campaign manager for We Are Oregon, Blake Sedgley, is equally excited to see how Hinman does in her time in office. @@http://www.uoregon.edu/findpeople/person/Blake*Sedgley@@
“She is going to be an outstanding leader,” he said. “Through this whole process, the biggest lesson she learned was how to accept leadership.”
After Hinman learned she had won the election, she was extremely happy but exhausted. She explained that everyone on the campaign worked so hard and put in so much energy that coming to the end was a relief.
“There were times when it would have been so easy to just stop, but we knew we couldn’t just stop,” Hinman said.
When Sedgley called Hinman after the results came out, she was still in shock. He laughed as he remembered how the rest of the night she couldn’t bring herself to believe it was true. Then, in the middle of celebrating with her team, she stopped and told everyone it was time to begin planning for next year.
“She is just like that,” Sedgley said. “She is always looking for the next step.”
However, Hinman isn’t without faults.
“She is terrible with technology,” Sedgley said, laughing. “I had to teach her how to use tabs on Excel.”
Hinman believes one of her faults is overworking herself. She said she tends to say “yes” a lot, and that can lead to her being stretched too thin. Mostly, she is anticipating a positive change next year.
“I’m excited for the positive culture shift that is going to happen on campus,” Hinman said. “This will be the first time in a long time students will get to see their money on campus. The energy and excitement from the campaign hasn’t worn off yet, and I’m just excited to move forward.”