The New Deal won control of the Student Government Association Friday, narrowly defeating the Remix Party in the highest voter turnout for an SGA election in a decade.

With 52.6 percent of the vote, the New Deal took the win as 7,306 student voted, which is 21% of the student body. It was an all-time high for participation in elections since 1999.

“We were able to develop a grassroots approach that went through all parts of campus,” said Katie Barlow, president-elect for the New Deal. “We weren’t just at Tate. We were at North Campus, Brumby Hill, South Campus, and other places.”

Cameron Secord, vice president-elect, associated the win with the message they promoted.

“Our message was different,” he said. “To my knowledge, in the past, there hasn’t been another group that wanted to allocate student fees.”

The New Deal won by 352 votes, with 3,557 votes and the Remix Party with 3,205 votes.

The New Deal will get straight to work on items of business Monday, beginning with “a clear cut plan of the stewardship of student fees,” said Barlow.

“We only own by 352, votes, but still need to win the over all of campus,” said Joe Chaudoin, treasurer-elect. “We can’t do it without student support.”

The New Deal will begin discussion on the judicial and transit policies, said Secord.

“We want hammer down the details so we know what needs to be done,” he said.

In the end, the New Deal said “they couldn’t do it without the people working with [them].”

“They are largely due to the reason of our success,” said Chaudoin.

The New Deal had this to say to the Remix Party:

“Thanks for a good campaign and helping both groups raise the votes up by 50 percent higher than before,’ said Barlow.

The New Deal looks forward to working with the members of the Remix Party and encourages them all to apply for appointed positions when the applications are available.

The New Deal will soon appoint executive board members and applications are due within the next week or two to the president-elect. No due date and time were specified.

In spite of their loss, the Remix Party believed that they ran a successful campaign.

“We worked; we put everything out there and were involved everywhere,” said Alfred Richardson, the party’s candidate for treasurer.

Though the executive ticket won’t be running next year due to certain obligations – Brittany Cassell, vice presidential candidate and Richardson are graduating next year, and Laura Ann Thompson plans to study abroad – they will continue to support and be active in SGA.

“We want to help anyone in office do the best they can for students,” said Thompson, presidential candidate for the Remix Party. “That’s what we’re here for.”

The party hopes the new administration puts the concern for student safety first.

“We want them to focus on a Safe Ride program,” said Richardson. “It will [ensure] students have a safe ride home and are protected.”

“We hope they do the best they can do and we’re excited for them,” said Thompson of The New Deal. “We had fun running against them.”

The party said if they had to do it all over again, they would “do it again with each other.”

Joining the new administration this fall are 36 senators, from each of the schools and colleges combined.

That number is set to change due to run-off elections in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Science and the School of Social Work.

There will be a run-off for the Grady College for Journalism and Mass Communication between David Koonin and Katie Dean Williams.

According to an e-mail sent by Mark Clifford, SGA elections chair, to run-off candidates, there will be voting on Wednesday and Thursday with campaigning through Thursday of next week.

Voting results are sent via email to each individual and his or her school.

The details of the run-off are pending until further notice until “[we get] final OASIS availability confirmation from their staff,” said Clifford.

There were no candidates for Senate in the Law School, the Graduate School, and Veterinary Medicine.

On another note, the referendum to charge a mandatory $3 fee for the implementation of an Office of Sustainability was passed and may go into effect as early as Fall 2010, pending University approval.

The referendum passed with 4,698 votes out of 5,833.

“Officially, the fee will be sent to the Mandatory Fee Committee, which meets in the fall,” said Ed Mirecki, Associate Director of Campus Life and SGA Adviser.

If the fee passes through the Mandatory Fees Committee, it will then be reviewed by University President Michael Adams and reviewed by the Board of Regents.

The student body also elected to pass and amendment allowing SGA to appoint a Web master.

The amendment passed with 4,189 votes out of 5,211.

“This would be open to any student and will be appointed by the president and then ratified by the Senate,” said Mirecki.

Though, the position is non-funded and non-paying, Mirecki said this gives students an opportunity to be involved with SGA who are not on the Senate.

“Being in the Senate, you represent students within your college,” said Mirecki.