My thoughts on the recent CSG SU election.
Published 14/03/25 Updated on 16/03/25
All week, I had confidently told fellow candidates that it was too close to call, SU staff had told me that it was too close to call. Unlike previous elections where I had some idea of the front runners, this week I only knew one for certain.
Nasir:
Regardless of any other outcomes, I was certain that Nasir would win the top job, and he did (what a great prediction). He had a huge team, the most society endorsements, and an incumbent platform (something which I hope will change in the bylaws soon!) That is not to say he did not win because of personal merits, he is a confident driven man, a good speaker with passion for the causes he supports, also clearly a savvy operator, able to capture the zeitgeist, in this case the demand for justice for Palestine. I do hope he manages to deliver on his promises of scholarships for the people of Palestine, but I know it will be an uphill battle for him!
Shock
However, as the results began, and instead of the usual upset (a candidate winning to great surprise), we witnessed none of my predictions come true. For this, I accept I was in some ways, naive. All the candidates that did win, are good people, with a strong base who campaigned hard. But to the extent of the other candidates, I am not sure. I expected one of the new officers to win, but not the result we got. I am happy that a diverse range of candidates with bold, different ideas for the SU will take office over the summer, and I wish them all good luck! But I am deeply disappointed, for myself but mostly for Gabi.
Gabi
I have known Gabi, my entire time at City, and she is a wonderful friend to me, and advocate for the Uni. Once I knew she was running, I knew I had both great competition and a great competitor. While I have disagreements with the management of her slate, they were a formidable force, with excellent management (such that they won the award for that). They went to every campus and mobilized many students. But it was not enough, sadly. While they did “win” some posts, ultimately the night was one of annihilation for the Progress4SU slate. (Two of the three posts were uncontested, and the person who won the hard seat was arguably the most well-known in their school.) In all other posts, and the presidency itself, Progress-Profailed.
The sadness is, I know Gabi would have been an amazing officer, and she has given so much to the SU already. And without sounding arrogant, I would also have made a good officer. But ultimately my biggest compliment was my loss.
That I, who mainly campaigned alone, with a smaller budget than the major slate, who did not have huge society backing, came 6th (assuming 4 officer spots), and that my loss came as a shock and upset to the staff who have supported election season, the surprise at my loss is a compliment that could have only been bested by winning. Ultimately, this means my biggest takeaway is that the context of an election matters so much, and just maybe… print my posters in a larger size!
Update after release of data:
Now the data has been released, and I have had some time to comb through it. My main takeaway is that I am so honoured by the support people gave me. I had a strong base but unfortunately could not expand it to the numbers needed. But sadly as I expected, most of the votes cast were for single candidates as such, this election was won in the first round. A shame that the campaigns did not encourage the ranked choice. But sadly expected.
Again to my supporters thank you, and to those who supported my campaign in any way, thank you.
–Pip