Matthew Harsha-Strong ’06 slipped by opponent Chance Carlisle ’05 to win the office of Undergraduate Organizations Funding Committee chair by a mere 24 votes in a runoff election Tuesday.

Of the 1,014 votes cast, Harsha-Strong won 519 votes. Carlisle took 495 votes, and an additional 27 students abstained.

Yale College Council Vice President Ryan Sheely ’04 said the election turnout surprised him. Sheely said when he ran for secretary two years ago, the runoff only attracted some 300-odd voters.

“I’m really surprised by the turnout for the runoff,” Sheely said. “It speaks to the growing importance of the UOFC and the reforms it started this year. A lot of people care how it’s run.”

Harsha-Strong said he was just glad the election was over.

“It turned out to be a formative experience,” Harsha-Strong said. “I worked so hard to reform the UOFC this year and to win this election, and I couldn’t have done it without everyone who helped me. Every vote really did count.”

Harsha-Strong said he plans to continue to work on the reforms initiated over the past year, as well as compile a guide for student organizations similar to that he has seen at other Ivy League universities. He also said he wants more money for the UOFC.

“I want to procure more funding,” Harsha-Strong said. “I was depressed we were only able to allot a modest amount of funding at the last meeting.”

In the previous election, Harsha-Strong garnered 537 of the 1,840 votes, or 29 percent, while Carlisle received 506 votes, or 27.5 percent of total cast votes.

— Katherine Stevens