In a confirmation that almost didn’t happen, the ASUO Student Senate approved Oona Holcomb to the Elections Board, leaving just one spot left to fill on the five-member board.
Holcomb, a political science major, will fill the voter education position, a spot that has had two members come and go already this year.
At the beginning of Wednesday night’s meeting, Sen. Serene Khader presented ASUO President Jay Breslow’s request that the senate add Holcomb’s confirmation to the agenda.
The senators did not have Holcomb’s resume, and neither Breslow nor Holcomb were present. Worried about a confirmation on such short notice and without any information, the senators failed the motion.
But just as the last senator voted “nay,” Breslow walked into the meeting, handed out resumes and asked the senate again to hear Holcomb’s confirmation.
This time the motion passed, and Holcomb was confirmed, even though a few senators held on to their concern.
“I just don’t think we’ve been given the opportunity to consider this,” Senate President Peter Watts said. “We’ve been sliding, and sliding and sliding down this slippery slope of bringing people in [at the last minute].”
Many senators echoed that sentiment, expressing concern that the senate was setting a bad precedent by accepting confirmation on short notice.
But Breslow said such worries had no basis in reality.
“Any precedent that has been set for a week before confirmation has pretty much been shattered all year,” Breslow said, even though he admitted some of the shattering was his fault. Breslow has turned in many of his confirmation requests at the last minute.
In other business, the senate voted to adopt Executive hiring rules — with only slight amendments.
Finally, the senate doled out a total of $5,981 out of the $67,925 it had remaining in the general surplus. Four thousand dollars went to the Holistic Options for Planet Earth for its upcoming conference, and the rest was given to the Executive for Disability Awareness Week.