Junior Constantin Sabet D'Acre became the second Tufts Community Union (TCU) senator to step down this year. His Tuesday resignation came on the heels of sophomore Callie Kolbe's departure from the body on Sept. 23.
Sabet D'Acre was a newcomer to the Senate, and he said that it was more of a commitment than he initially anticipated.
"I realized very quickly that I wouldn't be able to fully commit to it and really get the best out of it," he said.
Originally, there was supposed to be a candidates' forum on Monday to be followed by a special election on Wednesday for Kolbe's seat.
But the Elections Commission (ECOM) decided to push both of the events back a week in order to hold a joint election.
Sophomore Kevin Terhorst, ECOM's treasurer, said that if the group had stuck to the previous schedule, there would not have been enough time to advertise the election to juniors who might want to replace Sabet D'Acre.
"We [didn't] have enough time right now to ... get the ball rolling fast enough," he said.
TCU President Neil DiBiase said the timing of the two resignations worked out well because it prevented two separate elections.
And while special elections are not ideal, he said that they do have benefits.
"I think special elections are a unique opportunity because they allow people who were otherwise hesitant about getting involved in Senate or tried to get involved earlier and were unsuccessful it gives them the opportunity ... to hopefully get a position that's right for them," he said.
Still, he said he is "obviously disappointed" by Sabet D'Acre's departure.
TCU Historian Alex Prior said that Sabet D'Acre's decision came as a surprise.
"Constantin had a great start on the body. He contributed a lot to debate, was eager to start on new projects and was enthusiastic in general," she said. "Given all that, it was surprising to the body to learn that Constantin had decided to resign."
Sabet D'Acre said that he enjoyed his time serving on the Senate and that he might run again in the future.
"I would definitely consider it because Senate is something that I really enjoyed and I was glad to be part of it," he said.
-by Rob Silverblatt
