By Kelsi Peace, Features Editor

Matt Worthington was playing “Guitar Hero” and making some Easy Mac with his roommates when the SA elections committee chair, Maher Saab, called with the election results.

“I was like, ‘What’s the word?’ and he said, “‘How are you tonight, Mr. President?'” Worthington said.

Worthington, junior English major from San Antonio, defeated Brandon Smith, international relations major from Kansas City, with 782 votes to 477, earning 62 percent of the vote.

This year, 1,307 students went to the poll.

Daniel-Paul Watkins, sophomore political science major from Fredricksburg, Va., won the vice presidency with 819 votes, defeating Ryan Stephen, sophomore finance major from Spring, who received 450 votes.

Watkins said he was confident the three-legged cat he used in his Chapel speech made the difference.

“I felt like I was the underdog,” Watkins said. “I felt like it was me versus the establishment.”

In this case, Watkins said, the regular man won.

“Thank God for three-legged cats,” he said with a laugh.

Stephen said that while his supporters were confident he would win, and some did not vote, he thought it was back and forth between himself and Watkins.

“I’m OK that it’s D.P.,” said Stephen, who plans to apply for the chief advancement officer position again.

Kevan Kirksey, sophomore finance major from Tyler, was elected treasurer with 736 votes; his opponent, Kyle Moore junior management major from Double Oak, received 481 votes.

Kirksey said he waited for results from a Rangers game in Dallas.

“It was the least-enjoyable baseball game I’ve ever been to,” said Kirksey, who didn’t hear the results until the ninth inning.

“I was kind of surprised,” Moore said. “I think a lot of people wanted [Kirksey] because he was the chief financial officer.”

But Moore said he isn’t done with SA.

“I still have projects that I want to do,” Moore said. “Just because I didn’t win treasurer doesn’t mean I’m going to cop out.”

While the work of campaigning is over, the newly-elected cabinet members have several things on the agenda for the rest of the semester.

On Thursday, Worthington met with Jim Holmans, executive assistant to the president, and Kevin Watson, associate vice president for administrative services, and a few candidates for the vice president of Campus Life position. He said he is ready to meet with his executive cabinet and establish a plan as a team.

“That’s what I said I was about,” Worthington said. “Community.”

Smith was unavailable for comment by press time.

For the rest of the semester, Watkins said he plans to meet with about half the student groups, and all three plan to begin making connections with administrators. Worthington, Watkins and Kirksey will also review applications for the appointed officer positions and make their selections before the end of the year.