ASUO confirmed the last of 24 new subcommittee officials on April 6, after two weeks of elections and months of preparation. Luda Isakharov of the Progress UO campaign was named next year’s ASUO president, with Kavi Shrestha appointed as her vice president.
ASUO released the results from its first round of elections on March 31. In situations where no candidate wins 50% or more of the vote, the two candidates with the most votes face off in a second round of elections called run-offs.
Slates are a group of candidates running for a variety of positions that share similar values and goals for their time in office, similar to a political party. This year Progress UO won a large number of the open seats.
Progress UO executive candidates Isakharov and Shrestha won their run-off early in the week after their opposition pulled out of the race. They will take office on May 25.
Leading up to the election, their opponent Claire O’Connor faced claims of bribery, according to the ASUO elections board. This led to O’Connor’s resignation from her role as the ASUO senate president and retirement from the race for ASUO president.
Isakharov and Shrestha are both sophomores at the University of Oregon. Isakharov currently serves as ASUO executive secretary of program administration, and Shrestha sits on the ASUO senate and serves as finance chair of the EMU Board.
As president, Isakharov will act as a spokesperson for the student body and an administrator for all ASUO programs, according to the ASUO Constitution. As vice president, Shrestha will serve as liaison between the diversity plan committee and the ASUO executive office. He will also be responsible for equipment funding relating to the ASUO executive branch.
Both Isakharov and Shrestha said their current ASUO experience, in addition to other past experiences, provided motivation to run for the executive positions and make needed changes to ASUO. “Things needed to shift both within the organization and in terms of accessibility to the student body,” Shrestha said.
According to the duo, this means listening to student voices. “We want to create a new process for ASUO,” Isakharov said. “First and foremost we want to default to the people who know more than us and are connected with the students and coalitions and uplift them and their voices and provide the institutional knowledge to support them.”
Sixteen new ASUO senators were also confirmed, leaving one position to be filled by appointment, and six subcommittee members were elected leaving five to be appointed.
Of the new senators elected, eight will also serve on one of the four sub committees: the Programs Finance Committee, the EMU Board, the Contracts Finance Committee and the Departments Finance Committee.
Sophomore Fisher Isenberg is one of those newly-elected senators. Occupying seat nine on the senate, Isenberg will serve a term of two years and will also be a member of DFC, which is tasked with funding for departments including the Mills International Center and Duck Rides.
“I’ll be able to make tangible change, which is really exciting,” Isenberg said. “I think it’s really important that our budget is allocated in a way that reflects the students’ perspective and needs.”
Natalie Hawkins will serve on seat seven in the new ASUO senate. She will also be a member of the CFC, which manages contracts like the one that provides students with free rides with Lane Transit District.
“A lot of students don’t know about the budgeting process and how much power ASUO actually holds,” Hawkins said. “That really needs to change.”
Hawkins said more public forums and student surveys could be an important step to getting the student body involved in the decisions made within ASUO.
