Bradley’s part of it

Andrew Bradley has been elected President of Warwick Students’ Union, in a race that went down to the wire.

Bradley was trailing Mitchell Fung for the first four rounds of the election process, but repeatedly won a greater proportion of the re-allocated votes as other candidates were eliminated. With the re-allocation of the votes from third place Andy Glyde, he received the edge that gave him the Presidency.

In a post-election interview, Bradley seemed exhausted from a week of intense campaigning and quietened by the result. He said he felt it was a “huge responsibility” and seemed to be feeling the weight of the task he will face next year.

Bradley said the “inclusive” nature of his campaign gave him the edge over the other candidates. In a reference to his campaign slogan, he said, “People came up to me and wanted to be part of it.”

He said his campaign and his policies were inseparable to his success. There have been some accusations of negative campaigning from his team, but Bradley dismissed these entirely as a reaction to the strength of the campaign.

A focal point of Bradley’s campaign has been his assertion he will create a microwave room in the new Union. He said, “It’s definitely going to happen and it’s something that a lot of people felt very passionately about.” Microwaves would help with the rising cost of student living according to Bradley, and he maintained that he would be happy even if the Union did not make a profit from the initiative.

When asked whether he was prepared to campaign nationally for issues such as tuition fees, Bradley said, “I’ll go to London if I have to go to London, I have no problem representing the students of Warwick on a national level.”

Another prominent slogan in the Bradley campaign was the phrase, “campaigning is not a dirty word”. Bradley said he stuck by this, “I emphatically say this will not be me imposing my views and my causes on the student body, this is about supporting students who wish to campaign.”

He also said he would continue doing kitchen runs throughout the year in an effort to communicate directly with the student body.

Although, Bradley had advocated increased transparency from the Students’ Union he said the release of figures would need to be decided on an individual basis.

Bradley views the Union and University’s relationship as symbiotic, “One simply could not exist without the other.” He said he would not be afraid to stand up to the University if necessary.

Bradley was optimistic about his ability to affect the rising price of student accommodation, but less emphatic about his ability to change bus fares. He said, “We have to get Warwick Accommodation to justify continual price hikes, better than to just say that it has to do with fuel costs.”

In reference to bus prices, he added, “It is something that we should and shall campaign on, but is, strictly speaking beyond the powers, the immediate powers, of the Union.”

Bradley also emphasised the supportive role of the Presidential office, saying, “I believe in enabling, facilitating and supporting and I really want to throw my full weight behind any student initiative that comes to me for help.”

Bradley’s main focus next year will be getting students more involved. He said, “I really want to push home this message and to encourage more people to get involved and to reach out to people who don’t think the union’s for them.”