Just hours before the polls opened for the 2019 SGA election, a third ticket entered the race to be UK’s next student government president and vice president. 

Juwan Page and Lidya Azad announced their write-in candidacy on Facebook late Tuesday night in hopes of providing “a real alternative” to those on the ballot and shaking up the week’s election in their favor. 

A Facebook post from the pair’s campaign page said that Page and Azad hope to engage “historically excluded students” to be excited to vote for their student government president and vice president. 

A campaign platform posted on the same Facebook page identified that Page and Azad’s are running in hopes of building a place of belonging for UK students, creating a UK without food and housing insecurity and further supporting UK’s graduate students. 

According to SGA elections board chair Michaela Taylor, write-in candidates are eligible to win the election. Though a certain number of preliminary signatures are required for candidates to be added to the ballot, they are not required for candidates to win. 

Page was recently crowned UK’s Homecoming King in fall 2018 after being nominated by the Black Student Union. Page was also previously named Mr. Black UK.

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