The Student Advisory Committee (SAC) of the Institute of Politics (IOP) elected its chair and vice chair on Sunday, nearly a month ahead of schedule.

Hannah Choi '01 and Richard A. Cooper '01 were elected chair and vice chair. SAC is the student governing body of the IOP.

The chair and vice chair elections usually take place in the beginning of December, along with a slate of IOP committee chairs.

However, this year the top two offices were elected early so the new leadership would be in place for a Nov. 29 semiannual meeting with the senior advisory committee of the IOP, according to outgoing SAC chair Byron J. McLain '00.

Former vice chair Curtis J. Mahoney '00 agreed, adding that changing leadership after an important meeting created a feeling of discontinuity.

The senior advisory committee, including famous members like Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. (D-Ill.) and Sen. Edward M. Kennedy '54-'56 (D-Mass.), works with SAC to aid the IOP's full-time staff in making decisions.

"We've noticed that in the past it's been problematic to have the senior advisory committee meeting and have leadership change a week after," Mahoney said.

This year, the need for the SAC leadership to be in place was especially acute, McLain said, because of changes in the structure of the IOP's staff made over the summer.