‘I can bring a fresh look’
Kenneth Bragg never planned on running for president.
But last year, his single write-in vote flipped the student body treasurer race upside down.
“That kind of changed everything,” he said.
While eating with friends in Russell House on election day last year, he voiced his regret in not having run for Student Government. A friend mentioned that he could always write his name in, and that’s just what Bragg did.
He voted for himself for senator of the College of Arts and Sciences, treasurer, vice president and president.
His vote for treasurer forced a runoff between current Treasurer Coy Gibson and his opponent, Yousef Ibreak.
Bragg, a third-year economics student from Aiken, had always thought of running for a position in SG, but, until recently, his target had been student senate.
“I’ve always been really interested in politics,” Bragg said. “I’ve always wanted to be in a role where I can make a difference. I was planning on running one way or the other.”
He actually intended on running for senate last year but couldn’t find the filing information in time.
This year he found the paperwork, and he hopes to occupy SG’s highest office.
Bragg is running on a narrower platform than his opponents. It focuses mainly on funding student organizations properly, improving USC’s image and giving students a voice.
His big push, however, is to turn SG into a “cohesive unit” that can work with the student body and administration more effectively to reach its goals.
“I want to make sure that ... anything that affects the students has the voice of the students attached,” Bragg said.
He said he would be “as engaged as possible” with USC’s board of trustees, on which the student body president gets a non-voting seat.
Bragg, who has never been involved with SG, sees his “outsider” status as an asset.
“I can bring a fresh look into Student Government,” he said. “I’m not involved in it currently, so I can come in there and see everything they’re doing, look at it (and) see any flaws there might be.”
He also hopes to challenge the popular perception that SG is an insular group of students who aren’t engaged with the general student population.
“A lot of people have that perception of them, and, to a point, it’s true. These are people that have been involved with this since freshman year, and they keep to themselves,” Bragg said. “They need to be told, ‘Hey, everyone out here thinks you’re this little group.’ I’d like to get them more involved around campus and have people see them more going out to events and connecting with the students.”
But this time, Bragg will need more than just his own vote to change everything.