Bristol University’s Independent Student Newspaper Issue 249
•
Monday 19th March 2012
• www.epigram.org.uk
Charlton elected UBU President
Fashion The secret agents of style
Jenny Awford Deputy News Editor
Tristan Martin
After a highly competitive fortnight of campaigning and controversies, Paul Charlton has emerged victorious in the battle for UBU President. The eagerly anticipated student election results were announced on Friday 16 March to the captivated crowds in Bar 100. Charlton’s effective ‘Why Gamble?’ campaign made him a visible presence on campus. His election manifesto also stressed his desire that, ‘The Union should be there to help you, not something to battle against’. The new President-Elect emphasised the importance of clarity between University of Bristol students and their Union, saying that ‘everyone deserves to know what is happening at their Union’. In what was seemed to be a surprising turn of events, Presidential candidate Josephine Suherman, was the first to exit the race. Suherman was removed from the running in the second round after only scoring 784 votes. Charlton eventually won with 1,736 votes, compared to Georgina Bavetta’s 1,333 when second and third preferences were also included. Charlton expressed surprise at his victory, saying that he had ‘entertained no expectations’. Immediately after winning, Charlton thanked his fellow Presidential candidates and his dedicated campaign team. The new six member full-time sabbatical team includes four female Vice-Presidents, reversing the usual trend of a male-dominated group. There was as least one female candidate for every full-time UBU position. The new VP for Welfare and Equality, Alessandra Berti, commented that she
would have liked to have an all female team. Berti continued saying, ‘I hope this year’s example will encourage more females to follow suit next year’. The most hotly contested fulltime position was Vice-President for Activities, as five candidates battled it out for the coveted role. Voting went all the way to the fifth round with no one candidate gaining the majority. Martha West eventually emerged victorious in this tense race, receiving 1,036 votes in the last round. West commented that she was ‘gobsmacked to be in charge of 200 societies’. Her main aim as the VP Activities for the forthcoming academic year is ‘fairer access to all societies’ and the dissemination of a ‘weekly newsletter’ detailing all the
The pains of campaigns Behind the scenes of student politics Features 10
relevant news from the Union. Hannah Pollak was elected as the new VP Sport gaining 1,761 votes in the most conclusive contest of the night. Pollak expressed her relief that ‘all the hard work paid off’. She maintained
3298
Votes cast in the Presidential election alone
that her manifesto, which included ‘free gym classes’ and a ‘sauna in the gym’, were realistic. Pollak’s main aim for her forthcoming year at VP Sport was to get ‘more women involved in sport’. The fourth female candidate to
be successfully elected into the new Union sabbatical team was Alice Peck who ran unchallenged for VP Community. She was visibly upset at the Presidential result but later commented that she was ‘keen to work with anyone who the students of Bristol have elected’. Tom Flynn was elected as the new VP Education in an incredibly close two-candidate race. Flynn commented that he was ‘excited to make a genuine difference whilst representing Bristol students’. He expressed his surprise at the result, and stated that he ‘could not have run against a nicer person’. This year saw all Senate Representative positions filled, a vast improvement on last year, as only three of the part time positions were
Battle of the botox Which reality soap makes the grade? Film & TV 29
contested. Sheherazade El-Sukhun was also elected to be the new Chair of the Student Council. One of the most fiercely competitive battles of the evening was between 16 candidates for only five national representative positions. Two members of the current sabbatical team, Chris Ruff and Dom Oliver, were amongst those elected to be delegates for the NUS Conference on 24 - 26 April. The two unsuccessful Presidential candidates, Josephine Suherman and Georgina Bavetta were also elected. Bavetta scored a higher percentage of the vote, pointing towards the eventual outcome of the Presidential election. Thomas Phipps was elected as the final University of Bristol national representative.