As of 9 a.m. Wednesday morning, voting has officially begun for the 2020 University of Victoria Student Society (UVSS) elections. Students across UVic have until noon on Friday to have their say on who will soon represent their interests on the UVSS Board of Directors — a group that oversees a $15.5 million per year portfolio made up largely of student fees to run businesses, events, and essential student services.
You can access online voting at this link — although, unfortunately, there is no virtual “I voted” sticker to go along with it.
Not sure what or who you’re voting on? I’ve got you covered.
First up, there’s three referendum questions students will be voting on. This year, the referendums are from two campus groups looking to raise the amount of fees they receive from students through the UVSS and one initiative seeking additional student funding.
Here’s everything you need to know on the three referendums:
Students of Colour Collective referendum
Open Educational Resources referendum
The UVSS Board of Directors is made up of five Lead Directors, a Director of International Student Relations, and 11 Directors-at-Large. Lead Directors are paid salaries, while the other board members receive $50 monthly honorariums. All of these positions are currently up for election, although only international students can vote for the next Director of International Student Relations.
We spoke to each of the two cooperatives and three independent candidates running for this election about their platforms and priorities:
Dalal Tubeishat (Student Affairs)
Victoria Ritchie (Director-at-Large)
Justin Lo (Director of International Relations)
This week, the Martlet and CFUV hosted two forums for students to hear from their candidates — the All Candidates Forum and Lead Directors Debate. Both events were live tweeted on Twitter and livestreamed on Facebook.
Here’s our recaps of the forums:
Now, you’re all set and fully informed to go vote — just remember to cast your ballot before noon on Friday!
Impatiently awaiting the election results? The Martlet will be posting the results as they come in on Friday evening online.
