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After appointing new board members in its last meeting, Syracuse University’s Student Association will hold its fall 2023 assembly elections via a campus-wide vote from Sept. 25-29.

SA appointed new members to the Board of Elections, Finance Board and Supreme Court on Monday. Once voting opens for the assembly election, SU and SUNY ESF students can vote for candidates to fill positions, including first-year representatives, at-large representatives and representatives for SU’s individual schools.

Those elected will represent other students or their respective colleges and schools in SA by speaking on their experiences and voicing their concerns.

Otto Sutton, SA’s board of elections chair, said that after finalizing candidates, SA is focused on boosting student engagement in this election process.

“These first few weeks of school have been our time to promote and get students interested in running, and now it’s about engaging the student body in a campus-wide election,” Sutton said.

Each candidate needs 25 signatures from other students to run for a position, along with a background check and attendance to at least one information session, Sutton said. After candidates complete these requirements, the election then opens for student body voting.

SA last hosted elections in March, with 863 total votes cast from SU and ESF students. William Treloar and Yasmin Nayrouz, who were elected SA president and vice president for the 2023-24 academic year, focused their spring campaign on the need for increased student engagement and inclusivity, such as addressing mental health needs and working with multicultural organizations.

Treloar and Nayrouz told The D.O. that they plan to reach students through surveys and direct communication with student organizations, as well as work with all Assembly members to pass bills addressing student needs.

The fall election, Treloar said, allows first-year students to participate in SA alongside other students who were previously elected in the spring. Treloar said he has high hopes for the election as it will bring in more new people and goals for SA moving forward.

“It just brings so much new energy and new ideas to the Student Association, which is really what I’m excited to see,” Treloar said.

SA will also hold elections for appointed positions, which go through a rolling application process instead of an assembly election, Sutton said. Certain positions — including seats on SA’s Supreme Court, Finance Board, Board of Elections and university senators — are appointed and voted on by SA members.

Manas Kathir, SA’s new Board of Elections Commissioner, aspires to promote voter awareness across campus in his new position by using a website accessible to students and promoting the ‘Cuse Otto Vote program. Kathir is a first-year student in the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications.

“One of the things I take pride in is my ability to interact with people of different cultures and different personalities and just talking to them and wanting to know what they want,” Kathir said.

Sutton said candidates for the upcoming assembly election will be finalized by Wednesday. After finalization, SA’s outreach will begin work on encouraging students to vote.

To promote the election, SA will hand out booklets on voting forms around campus on Wednesday, along with tabling and sending out listserv emails, Sutton said. SA members will also set up lawn signs around campus that display QR codes linking directly to the voting form.

“Now it’s about making sure students are aware that this is going on and that they have a chance to go and make their voice heard,” Sutton said.

Published on September 17, 2023 at 10:57 pm