Officer elections on the horizon

Warwick SU Elections for Sabbatical Officers and Part Time Officers will take place between Wednesday 9 February and Friday 11 February. Last week, the SU published a democracy timeline on its website, outlining the month-long process.

Nominations for both Sabbatical Officer and Part-Time Officer candidates will open Friday 21 January at 12pm and will close exactly one week later. The following three weeks will see manifestos, hustings, and five days of campaigning until the polls close. As usual, an Elections Group made up entirely of students will coordinate the election process.

Each year, seven sabbatical officers are elected into full-time, paid positions. They hold these posts in the SU for one year. The seven positions are: President, Education Officer, Union Development Officer, Democracy Officer, Welfare Officer, Societies Officer and Sports Officer.

Rumours are that two current Sabbaticals, Education Officer Sean Ruston and Democracy and Communications Officer Chris Luck, are considering re-running for their positions. Though re-election is common at other Universities’ Students’ Unions, it has never before happened in Warwick’s history.

The SU have made some changes to Sabbatical positions. The Finance Officer has been renamed Union Development Officer, and will oversee entertainment, food and beverages, and student feedback. Next years’ Democracy Officer will no longer be in charge of Communications. Instead, the role will be split between all seven Sabbs.

The SU website encourages students to get involved, asking “Have you got what it takes to change your Union for the better? If you’ve ever moaned about Warwick SU or the University then it’s time to put your money where your mouth is and run to be a student officer.”

This year, the SU are focusing on elections for Part-Time Officers. Part-Time roles are carried out during a students’ normal academic year and include: Executive Committee Officers, Campaigns Officers, University Representatives, and International Forum Members.

“In the past, Part-Time Officer elections have largely been ignored,” said Chris Luck. “In the current economic climate, employability is the key concern. Students will learn communication skills, time management skills, everything you need to be employable. As a Part-Time Officer, you really can enact change”.

Though candidate nominations for Sabbaticals are expected to be higher than normal due to the current state of the job market, early interest in Part-Time Officer roles is lower than expected. It is hoped that the number of students who vote in the elections will also rise, though in recent years Warwick has outperformed other Unions’ turnout.

Some students were, however, sceptical. “I wouldn’t want to run for Part-Time. It seems like quite a big commitment on top of your studies, especially going into the final year of your degree,” said Louise Taylor, a second-year French and English Literature student.

Another second-year student, who did not wish to be named, added “I’m already on a committee. A Sabbatical just seems like a hiatus on the real world”.