The final two candidates for the 2016 Student Member of the Board (SMOB) election were selected Feb. 22 at the annual Nomination Convention.

The convention hosts student delegates from all middle and high schools in Montgomery County. The candidates give speeches and answer questions before the final two are chosen. This year’s finalists are sophomore Alex Abrosimov of Richard Montgomery and junior Eric Guerci of B-CC.

“I resonate with the students because instead of vague, politician-sounded rhetoric, I provide real answers to the many problems we face in our country,” Abrosimov said.

Abrosimov and Guerci defeated sophomore Olivia Gonzalez of Blair and junior Liam Kim of Wheaton for the finalist slots. Both candidates have plenty of SGA experience and the student delegates recognized that during the vote. Abrosimov is currently the sophomore class president at Richard Montgomery, while Guerci is the incumbent SMOB.

Both candidates have accomplished many things in their respective roles this past year. Guerci has initiated the biweekly SMOB minute and helped implement more technology into the classroom, while Abrosimov has started a student union and got food trucks to come to his school during lunch,

“If I am elected we will see a shift away from the top-down approach to communication that we currently have and a switch over to more smart, actionable policies,” Abrosimov said.

While both candidates have many areas of focus for the upcoming election, the main one they share is the student voice. Both candidates want all students to have a say in executive decisions and understand the importance of their peers opinions.

“As the Deputy Chief of Staff of the MCR (Montgomery County Regional SGA) Executive Board, I understand how important the role of the SMOB is in representing the student voice and how big of a connection the SMOB has to MCR and in speaking about legislation that benefits the student voice,” CHS delegate and sophomore Allison Wachen said.

With the April election quickly approaching, the candidates are buckling down and starting their campaigns in order to gain student support and recognition.

“I feel that I have already won and I think that we are going to go on the right path forward in the general election,” Abrosimov said.