By Rob McLaren
Today, March 3, is one of the most important dates in the electoral calendar: Super Tuesday, where voters in one-third of American states will head to the polls to pick the Democratic Party’s nominee for President – likely to be a two-horse race between the progressive firebrand Bernie Sanders and the moderate pragmatist Joe Biden. The stakes could barely be higher.
Here at Strathclyde, we’ve got a few two-horse races of our own. After a gruelling two weeks of campaigning, voting is now officially underway in the 2020 Strath Union elections, and with the future direction of the Union at stake – as it prepares to abandon our beloved ten floors of fun and move in to a glitzy new building in 2021 – it really is pivotal that you take a few minutes out of your day to go and vote.
Voting can be done at the Strath Union website and is open until 4pm on Thursday. Go make your voices heard.
One of the hotly-contested posts up for election this year is that of Vice President Welfare. Earlier today, I sat down with Dylan Welfare and Benn Rapson, the two candidates standing to be VP Welfare, to ask them about their policy proposals and their suitability for the role.
Why are each of you standing for election, and what are your main manifesto pledges?
Dylan, how will you apply your policy on creating welfare class representatives to PhD research students, who do not attend classes?
The Mature Students Association often feels it is ignored by the Union. If elected, how will you ensure that mature students are supported?
In order to push through your most transformative policies, you will have to attend meetings with senior officials at the University. Do you have what it takes to stand up to the University executive?
You were both in violation of election law when you each sent an unsolicited campaign e-mail to over 100 students. Do you wish to apologise for that?
You have each issued different endorsements for other Union candidates. If elected, will you be able to set aside any differences and work with the new Student Exec?
Finally, can you sum up why we should vote for you, in 30 seconds?
