The LSU Election season is now upon us and the candidates are readying themselves for their campaigns where they hope they will garner your support. However, before the voting days come to pass, it is important to know how the election will be run and what the executive officers you are voting for will be doing whilst in office. Lucky for you, I have combed through the LSU constitution and by-laws, researched the roles, and examined the dates to create a coherent election guide for you to follow.
How does the Election work?
Students nominated themselves to run as candidates for the election and soon will be on their way to campaigning. Campaigns will begin on the 24th of February and will include media appearances, campus canvassing and social media posts. Each candidate must provide a clear manifesto of their aims and methods they are looking to implement if they become an executive officer. These manifestos are fully submitted on the 21st of February and will be available for you to view here.
The vote will open at 8am on the 3rd of March and will remain open for three days until it closes at 3pm on the 5th of March. Voting is online. The election will follow a STV system where the voter is asked to rank candidates in order of preference. The first-choice votes are counted and if a single candidate gains enough votes to reach above the threshold, that candidate will win. If the threshold is not met on the first count, the candidate with the fewest first-choice votes will be eliminated and their second-choice votes will be counted towards the totals of the other candidates. This will be repeated until a candidate rises above the threshold and wins the election. RON (Re-Open Nominations) will also be considered as a candidate for counting purposes. A voter is offered the choice of RON if they believe the nominations should be re-opened. If RON is elected, a new election will be scheduled for that specific role.
So, what do the roles do?
-President
The president of the Students’ Union leads the executive officers and thus is responsible for multiple facets of Union affairs. The president will have the most influence to affect changes occurring in the Students’ Union which might affect you. The president’s day-to-day work can include meeting with multiple different leaders connected to student life, hall committees and society leads are great examples.
Incumbent president, Rachael Alvey, had this to say, “Challenges are always sticking to budgets – we want to put events on but can’t always make it work financially. Also, we do 35-hour working weeks and that’s honestly not enough time with the number of plates you’re trying to spin at once.”
-Communities Executive Officer
This role works closely with societies and communities associated with the Students’ Union to promote democratic practices. Their focus revolves around ensuring all communities are running fairly and properly, this includes broadening accessibility. Furthermore, the Communities officer helps societies gain funding. The officer sits on multiple boards.
-Academic Executive Officer
This position has been transformed in recent years with the rise of AI use in academic work. The grey area we find ourselves in with Artificial Intelligence and academic study means the Academic Officer needs to be in constant dialogue with the University over the use of AI by students and lecturers. Their responsibilities lie in evolving the academic representation of students and responding to the Academic needs of students.
-EDI Executive Officer
The Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Officer is responsible for promoting inclusivity and diversity within the Students’ Union and must push policies and programmes which incorporate this goal. This officer is also there to provide support for students who have experienced discrimination or harassment. The role requires continuous working on incident reporting, prevention, and support.
The current EDI officer, Atlas Alberich, outlined the biggest challenges to the role, “One of the biggest challenges is trying to achieve so much in just a year. You come in with a lot of ideas about what you want to do, but you really need to focus and manage your time to make sure you’re spending time on the projects which have the biggest impact.”
-Sport Executive Officer
The sport officer is also the head of the Athletic Union. Thus, this role has a deep connection to all sport committees and the sport senate. The officer is responsible for any problems which come to them surrounding sport. The officer builds and enhances initiatives to improve the AU and IMS experiences. Sport has a unique challenge as the officer must be able to work with numerous people on a daily basis due to the vast sporting community in Loughborough.
Frankie Suckling, the incumbent Sport Officer gave us insight into the common challenges of the role, “Need to be very organised as there can be a lot of things going on at once. For example, planning for different events, so being able to coordinate well and keep on top of the workload.”
Who are the Candidates?
Presidential candidates:
- Paula Halama
- Mia Jackson
- Peck Yong Lee
- Joaquin Lorenzana
- Priti Trivedi
- RON
Student Communities EO candidates:
- Lucy Palmer
- James Peat
- RON
Academic Experience EO candidates:
- Mehtaab Rehman
- Rebecca Schofield
- RON
EDI EO candidates:
- Harry Huffen
- Inaayah Irshad
- RON
Sport EO candidates:
- Frankie Suckling
- RON
Keep an eye out
There will be much campaigning over the next few weeks and the candidates who take the opportunities given by LSUMedia will likely see a boost in their votes. So keep an eye out for candidate articles coming out next week, which will give you a better idea of what each candidate stands for and plans to do. Furthermore, LSUTV and LCR will be presenting segments with each candidate. It is important to vote for these roles as it helps ensure your Students’ Union is run democratically and through the people you think will do the best job. Keep an eye on LSUMedia to help you make an informed decision when it comes to voting day.
