Although political science junior Gabriel Pereira did not win the seat in the College Station City Council for which he campaigned, Pereira said the campaign has been a positive experience for him.
Pereira, a member in the Corps of Cadets, was the first student to run for City Council since 2010. He was defeated by Blanche Brick in the Place 1 election Tuesday, gaining 23 percent of the vote.
He said he was pleased with the outcome of getting almost a quarter of the votes. Pereira said with more time, he believes he would have been able to get more support from the Texas A&M student body, but he supports those who did get elected.
Pereira said he ran because he wanted to emphasize student-city relationships. Pereira said the campaigning process showed him what it takes to run a campaign.
“I learned what I need to know and need to do to run a campaign, what’s necessary for the infrastructure and about [the millennial] generation and what it takes to get them engaged in voting,” Pereira said.
Now the midterm elections are over, Pereira said he wants to be more involved in his on-campus organizations.
“I am the treasurer of the cycling team, [chairman] of the Texas A&M College Republicans, and my attention has been diverted from those, so I look forward to focusing on those now,” Pereira said.