Nov. 7 — Undergraduate Student Government (USG) Senator Matthew Anderson has announced that he will resign from his position as USG Senator of the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences (CEAS).

This decision came only hours after the Supreme Court of the USG ruled that the fall 2007 election was, in fact, valid; the court ruled in Anderson’s favor.

However, Anderson said that, ironically, this was what motivated him to resign.

In an e-mail to The Statesman, Anderson said, ‘I resigned because I considered the Election compromised, both legally and in terms of fairness.’

‘My integrity would not allow me to benefit from a situation like this, [from] an entirely unjust election, and so I made the choice to resign,’ he said.’ ‘Furthermore I considered it best for the integrity of the Undergraduate Student Government as a whole.’

Although Anderson recognized that the issues surrounding the election were not his fault, he refused to take his seat. He said, ‘I wish to avoid even the illusion of impropriety’hellip;due to my connections with a good number of people presently serving in the USG.’

He also wished to send a message to the USG: that there is serious issue with the clauses that govern elections. Also, the reason he had opposed the petitioner, in the case of the suspended election, was so that he could bring to light parts of the law that he thought would not be mentioned.

He said, ‘The court agreed with my interpretation, and really, my only reason for presenting myself as [being] self-interested in the brief was so I had standing to submit it.’ He admitted that his participation in the case was not about taking his seat.

Robert Romano, former USG Senator, backed Anderson’s decision to resign and praised him as being a USG official with ‘commitment to doing the right thing.’

Addressing others who supported him as well, Anderson said, ‘I’m sorry that I will not be able to represent you as your Senator, but this choice was not made lightly.’ When I opted to run to be your representative, I also decided to always do what I believed was right.’

As for the rest of this semester, Anderson said he is currently seeking a purely appointed position in the USG. He also stated that he intends on working with ‘allies’ in the USG Senate to carry out some of his previous goals. Moreover, Anderson plans to run for USG, again, in the spring semester.

He will officially resign on Nov. 8 at the USG Senate Meeting.