Editor's note: the initial Students' Union candidate list seen by The Cheese Grater did not feature Hana Mourgharbel as a candidate for Welfare Sabb. In light of the list of the SU website showing that Mourgharbel is seeking re-election, the article has been amended.
The original list also included sabb candidates that have since dropped out. The standfirst has been amended to reflect the most recent accurate number of candidates.
53 candidates are competing for the six paid sabbatical positions in next week’s Leadership Race — a recent record high for the Students’ Union.
Students will go to the polls from 16 to 20 March to vote on the political leadership at 25 Gordon Street. The six Sabbatical Officers are paid over £33,000 a year to carry out their agendas.
Elections are also being held for Student Officers, some reps, and network positions, as well as the committee roles of over 400 societies at UCL.
Lack of incumbents?
Contrary to usual trends, only two of the current Sabbs out of the three eligible for re-election are running again for their current position, with Sarah Jilani gunning for a second stint at Education Officer and Hana Mourgharbel for Welfare and Community.
Amidst speculation, The Cheese Grater can now confirm that current President Anam Choudhary will be attempting to make the switch to Postgraduate Officer.
Election nerds might have observed that Choudhary is risking her incumbency bias, potentially harming her chances of re-election.
Despite not appearing on the initial candidate list, Welfare Sabb Hana Mourgharbel has decided to run again for a second term, but will face fierce competition from eight other candidates.
This is the highest number of open races for sabbatical officer roles in recent years, with four Sabbs running for re-election last year and three winning.
Vacant and unopposed positions
Vacant and unopposed positions have plagued the Union elections for years; this year there are six roles with vacancies — three of which are officer positions, with no one running for Mature Students, Disabilities, or People of Colour Officer.
There are 15 part time officer positions within the Union and all of these officers sit on the Union Executive — the council that has a final say on all policies that go through the Union.
No students are running to sit on the Trans, Disabled, or Research networks either, meaning there will be a lack of representation for some student groups in the year ahead.
It is worth noting that vacant roles will be contested again in a later by-election which will allow someone to step into the roles and ensure these marginalised groups have a say in Union decision making.
Alongside these vacant positions, there are also three roles that are running unopposed: Media Rep, Research Students’ Officer, and Mature/PT/Parents/Carer Rep.
Races to watch
Two artsUCL heavyweights will be going up against each other in the Activities and Engagement Officer race, in one of the key races to watch.
Arts Officer Ben Francis is running against the President of Drama Society Audrey Lau, alongside seven other candidates, including current Societies Officer Jesse Ashdown.
It will be interesting to see how the arts bloc votes with two big names in that circle running.
The most contested race is the Postgraduate Officer race with 15 candidates. As mentioned earlier, current President Anam Choudhary is running, and naturally will have an advantage based on name recognition going into the campaign period.
Student Trustee is, as usual, highly contested with 11 candidates in the mix, including LGBTQ+ Network Welfare Officer Joe Yiu Ip and current Student Trustee Adam Cleary amongst the names who have thrown their hat in the ring.
The race for SU President is similarly crowded with 11 candidates running, including Sustainability Officer Oskar Barltrop, Activities and Societies Rep Christian Chambers, and Societies Rep Sree Cavuturi who all currently hold SU positions.
What to expect
The Leadership Race is always a fun watch; expect candidates promising borderline lunacy, fantasy economics, sleeping pods, sleeping pods, and sleeping pods.
Walls across UCL will be plastered with posters and QR codes, and the Student Centre will be filled with candidates illegally campaigning.
It is, quite frankly, a circus. But an important one nonetheless. The future of the Students’ Union, the body that represents you, the student, and funds every club and society, is in your hands.
Campaigning begins today at 16:00, and voting opens next Monday.
Let the chaos begin.