More than a thousand of you voted to approve our fee increase. Here’s what comes next!
Graphic by Rae Dawson.
A few weeks ago, our referendum question –– asking for a $2 fee increase per full-time student, and half that for part-time students –– left our hands, and was sent out via emailed ballot for undergraduate students at UVic to vote on. According to the now official results released by UVSS Elections, 2 156 students, or 11.9 per cent of the student body, turned out to vote.
We at the Martlet want to extend a sincere thank you to everyone who turned out from March 4–6 to participate in the democratic process here at UVic. We are especially grateful, of course, to the 55.3 per cent of you, or 1 043 voters, who recognized the importance of independent student media on your campus and voted “yes” on our question. Through the campaign period, we received many heartwarming messages from students who understand and appreciate the work we have the privilege to do every day on the campus we love.
We are also grateful to the 52 per cent of you who voted “yes” to the UVSS CPI adjustment question, tying student fees to the annual percentage change in the all-items Consumer Price Index for B.C. to a cap of 3 per cent per year. This referendum question passing will also make a huge difference for all the groups and outlets in the SUB, ourselves included, enabling us to keep up with rising annual costs due to inflation.
In a time and place like Victoria in 2026, where the costs of living and pursuing post-secondary education are so high, that extra $2 per full-time student will go right back into the pockets of the students you rely on to bring you reliable campus community news. Your votes have ensured we will be able to provide more, better-paying, on-campus jobs to students, deepen our reporting on issues that matter to students and the community, and lessen our reliance on non-guaranteed sources of income like ad sales and grants. As we approach our 80th volume, this result means the continued existence of the Martlet for many years to come.
As thankful as we are to the 1 043 of you who voted yes, we would also like to extend a thank you to the 44.7 per cent of you who voted “no,” both for participating in the process, and for showing us what we already know to be true –– that there’s always room for us to improve.
We’re choosing to take your vote as a challenge: to do better, more impactful reporting, and to tell more stories that matter. We hope we can change your mind, even retroactively, about the value and importance of independent journalism on your campus through our next volume, and and with many volumes to come.
Our fee increase takes effect in September 2026. This means that, come September, we’ll be growing our team and making a number of big changes. So, thank you, from the whole Martlet team. We’re very excited about this next chapter, and we can’t wait to share it with you all.
