Voting for this year’s Union Council commenced today at 09:00. Results will be announced tomorrow in the Students’ Union at 19:00, with voting closing an hour before.
Union Council represents the student voice, made up of 58 students elected through their departments. Council exists to discuss and vote upon motions and policies, shaping how the Union runs. Elected at the beginning of each academic year, each Councillor represents 300 students, but not all of the places have been filled this year.
Ali Cole, Vice President of Democracy and Communication, spoke to Label: ‘Overall, I am pleased with the turnout, since we have increased the number of candidates running compared to previous years. However, I am still well aware that it is not a full Council. As a result, I will be working very hard over the coming months to ensure Council is filled.’
‘PHIR and English and Drama have taken the title for the most competitive departments this year; we have no students running from Chemistry or Geography, which is a shame,’ Cole explained. PHIR have four candidates running for three positions whilst English and Drama have five running for just two.
Label discussed the elections with David Haines, Chair of Council: ‘I am of course disappointed at the number of uncontested or vacant positions, but numbers of overall nominees for councillor positions is substantially higher than last year, and this is great news for democracy at the Union.’
With regard to the unfilled positions, he added: ‘All casual vacancies remaining after the election will be elected through council; they will be advertised again to departments in order to try and establish a full council.’
‘Union Council is a great experience for all those students who choose to get involve with it,’ said Cole. ‘The chance to engage with those working right at the top of the Union is a fantastic opportunity, and one which I have tried my very best to promote to students across Loughborough.’
View candidate manifestos and vote online at http://www.lufbra.net/elections
