When I arrived on Harvard’s campus almost three years ago, I was excited to meet new people, expand my horizons, and contribute to the community in any way that I could. It was this attitude that initially compelled me to run for a seat on Harvard’s student government during my first semester.

Three years, two elections, and many great memories later, I now serve as co-president of the Harvard Undergraduate Association.

During my term, I have tirelessly served the student body.

Last summer, I represented the student body at a panel discussion hosted by the U.S. Department of Education, advocating for the protection of minority students in college admissions.

Once the school year started, I led the HUA in institutionalizing funds for our summer storage program, ensuring that it continues to be accessible to students for years to come. We created countless new grants to help student organizations thrive. We mobilized our platform to advocate for the Faculty of Arts and Sciences to keep the deadline to add and drop classes later in the semester, helping to ensure that students have the freedom to choose class schedules on their own time.

These are only a few of the HUA’s accomplishments this year. However, over the last few weeks, I have been reminded that there is a dark side to student politics.

You have probably seen my name in recent headlines. I want to take this opportunity to set the record straight.

When I first ran for co-president in March of 2023, I was alerted to vile accusations and rumors posted about me on Sidechat — an anonymous forum frequented by Harvard students. I originally chalked these rumors up to dirty campaign tricks and assumed that they would go away after the election.

I was wrong. After I won, the rumors only increased in frequency. It felt like they would flare up whenever I did something notable, like speak at Freshman Convocation or have my name mentioned in a news article.

Unfortunately the rumors only grew. Despite a lack of any formal investigations or complaints filed against me, the social stigma around me ballooned.

I was ostracized from friends, groups, and communities that I hold dear. And last month, conveniently just days before the HUA’s election cycle, one organization was alerted to these rumors and hastily decided to revoke my membership, causing them to mutate into a firestorm.

Let me be perfectly clear: I unequivocally reject these rumors. Those close to me can attest that misconduct — of any kind — is antithetical to my character. The mere existence of these rumors saddens me deeply and has taken a considerable toll on my mental health and well-being.

The individuals perpetuating these rumors about me seem to have three goals: discredit my administration’s contributions to the student body, damage my reputation, and scare me — and others like me — into abandoning our aspirations for public service.

I refuse to let them succeed in accomplishing any of these goals.

I’m not alone in these kinds of struggles. Students serving and succeeding in student government have been no stranger to baseless accusations in recent years. Two years ago, just before election season, a student government member faced allegations of losing or stealing $20,000 of Covid-19 relief funding from the Undergraduate Council. Of course, after the election passed and an audit was conducted, the student was fully exonerated.

Harvard’s student government has become an unfortunate microcosm of the same endless mudslinging we see in our nation’s politics today. It does not have to be this way. This isn’t Washington — we are college students. I hope that someday, those in Harvard’s student government can find ways to be rivals or disagree without attempting to tear each other down.

Now, I am facing a recall vote, although my term officially ends in just 10 days. However, I’m not worried, and I’m going to stand strong. I am confident that the truth will prevail. I am confident that the student body will recognize these rumors as baseless.

I have served as HUA co-president for the last 13 months. In that time frame, I’ve been blessed to accomplish above and beyond what I had planned for this role. No matter the results of the upcoming vote, I’m proud to say that the work we’ve done — and the positive legacy we’ve built — will long endure.

Most importantly, as I look towards the future, this ordeal will not deter me from using my voice. I will continue to step up to serve my community, both at Harvard College and beyond.

John S. Cooke ’25 is a Government concentrator in Mather House. He serves as co-president of the Harvard Undergraduate Association.