ASUO is holding its spring term elections where students can vote and run for different positions within the student government.
According to ASUO’s website, voting will be open to students on April 11 at 9 a.m.
ASUO President Luda Isakharov said all students who pay the Incidential Fee and are at least part-time students can vote on Engage, a website where University of Oregon students can get more information about events and organizations on campus.
The I-Fee is included in students registration fee and provides ASUO with a budget to distribute to different student organizations and clubs throughout the year, according to ASUO’s website.
Isakharov said that while it may be too late to file as a candidate on the upcoming ballot, students can still be a write-in candidate. She said students can still make an impact by joining ASUO through open positions and working for different committees and branches later in the spring and next fall.
Candidates can run individually or as a part of a campaign slate alongside other candidates.
“Slates are not at all required and are not formally recognized by the elections board. Some candidates choose to associate themselves with each other as is their first amendment right,” ASUO election board chair Nathaniel Leof said.
The two candidates that will be on the spring ballot are Max Jensen and Chloé Webster. Webster is running under the campaign slate Amplify UO.
According to Jensen’s campaign biography on the ASUO website, the main issues he wants to tackle include addressing student power and autonomy, holding the UO Board of Trustees more accountable, high tuition, housing insecurity, food insecurity, access to mental health resources and University Administration Neglect and Exploitation of Students.
Webster’s main issues listed in her campaign biography stress tuition cost, feelings of disconnect from the UO administration, poor pay periods coupled with pushback against unionization efforts, confusions about the ASUO student organization financial processes, lack of trust in Eugene police and student pressure to attend classes even when sick or unwell.
On April 3, ASUO held a debate, moderated by the Daily Emerald, where Jensen and Webster’s running mate Finn Jacobson, prompted by questions from debate moderators and audience members, spoke on their visions for ASUO and the university as a whole.
During the debate, candidates talked about their approaches to navigating ASUO’s relationship with the Board of Trustees, strategies for interacting more equitably with student groups, and their ideas on how to deal with policing on campus.
Leof said the spring elections affect the direction that students want their programs to go towards and who represents them.
“These elections really do change how our campus operates for not just a year but potentially two years or longer,” Leof said. “It’s really important to show off our voices, be heard and help determine a course our campus will take.”
Isakharov will be stepping down as ASUO president May 25 and will not be seeking re-election. She said she was burnt out, but she was hopeful for the next president.
“I think it’s the right time to give other people the reins because it’s good to have turnover in ASUO,” she said.
