This year’s elections for Bryn Mawr’s SGA featured eight positions up for election but excluded a contender for Traditions Mistexes.
While multiple students were nominated for Traditions Mistex during the early-February nomination period, none accepted, said sophomore Maggie Atkinson ’27, one of the current Elections Co-Heads. As a result, a special election will follow to identify new candidates.
The time commitment required for the role contributed to these refusals, said Atkins. Mistexes run each of the school’s traditions: Parade Night, Lantern Night, WTF Week, and May Day. The role demands continual work; when one tradition ends, planning for the next one begins.
The Mistexes are traditionally two juniors, so current sophomores are eligible for nomination. Because many students want to study abroad for a semester of their third year, the position can be hard to fill because at least one Mistex must always be on campus. If only one Mistex is studying abroad during a given semester, the other can observe the role while they are gone, Atkins said. This can be difficult to do alone because of the workload, so the position is usually filled by two students who are both staying on campus year-round.
This year’s lack of candidates is unusual; last spring, two duos ran and the race generated considerable buzz. According to Atkins, Traditions Mistex is a “phenomenal” position that is crucial to creating a welcoming first-year experience at Bryn Mawr. Being on SGA is incredibly valuable and rewarding, Atkins said, and Traditions Mistex is “one of the more fun [roles] that people would enjoy.”
Since nobody was initially elected for Traditions Mistex, SGA will be holding a special election for the position after spring break. This election will have shorter time frame; usually, a special election consists of three days of nominations, one day for nomination acceptance (candidates don’t need to be fully committed to running at this point), three days of campaigning (including a forum to give statements and receive questions), and two days of voting. If nobody runs again, the SGA will repeat the election until Traditions Mistexes are elected.
SGA receives many election nominations, but only about half of the candidates accept. Additionally, “less people vote than you’d think,” Atkins said, “it’s not as big as I’d like it to be.” They are working to increase turnout by posting about elections and the different available positions at @brynmawr.elections on Instagram. Sophomores interested in the position can use the account to follow the upcoming special election and find contact information for the Elections Heads if they have any questions about running for Traditions Mistex.
