www.sussexstudent.com/elections

STUDENTS’UNION

10 ELECTION

MYTHSBUSTED

10MYTHSABOUTELECTIONS

Full-Time Officer Elections will take place in the Spring Term. You have the

chance to have your say about who could be the next President, Welfare

Officer, Education Officer, Activities Officer, Communications Officer and

Operations Officer, it might even be you.

Voting in Students’ Union elections is an important way for you to have your say

about what happens within the Students’ Union as well as on campus and in the wider student community, don’t throw it

away.

If you are thinking about nominating yourself for one of these positions then

check out our online resources and find out more about the forthcoming elections and

roles that you could apply for at www.sussexstudent.com/elections

MYTH #1

“It’s just a popularity

contest”

There are no guarantees or certainties with elections. Just

because you think someone knows lots of people it doesn’t mean

those people would vote for them. Remember every vote counts and

by encouraging those around you to take a few minutes to make the most of their right to vote you can shape

the way the Union runs.Knowing people that you can talk to and try to persuade to vote for you can help but with thousands of votes cast in some elections, no one can know that many people!

People who have nominated themselves do lots of different things to persuade people to vote for them; hand out flyers, put up posters, speak in lectures and seminars, send emails, use Facebook and plenty more.

There have been times when existing officers have tried to be re-elected and been unsuccessful despite presumably knowing more people so elections aren’t a popularity contest.

MYTH #2“I’m not the right sort of

person to get involved in elections”

In a poll run during Freshers Week, 100% of those who answered said they would be voting in this year’s elections, there is no such thing

as the ‘right sort of person’ to put themselves forward or

vote in elections.

Every member of the Students’ Union has the right to vote (membership is automatic for all Sussex and BSMS Students, unless you have opted out or you are intermitting) and every year different people with different views, ideas and experience win. Just because the current officers focus on particular issues or projects, it doesn’t mean you have to or that you have to vote for a similar person.

Each officer makes the position their own and the Students’ Union provides training and support to help them achieve their goals.

There are no particular skills or experience required to win an election or be a successful officer. Enthusiasm and passion are the main criteria.

MYTH #3“I’m not political enough”

There aren’t particular issues you have to be passionate about to vote or to get people to vote for

you, other than being interested in making things better for

students at Sussex.

Some elected officers and reps get involved in a variety of campaigns and issues, others focus on other areas of the role. People with varying political views and experience are elected at every set of elections so there is no ‘right sort’ of political interest or activity for those who put themselves forward or those who vote for them.

MYTH #4“I won’t

have time”

Voting online takes a couple of minutes, and your vote can make a

difference to the year ahead. Even if you are in your final year making that quick vote can be a way of you using your knowledge of Sussex to help benefit future students.

If you are thinking about nominating yourself,full- time officer roles are paid full-time positions for one year from July until July. They’re designed to be as accommodating as possible when it comes to completing your course or year of study, and the Students’ Union can provide training and support to help you carry out your responsibilities within the Union.

The election campaign period is one week with a few meetings beforehand so if you decide to nominate yourself, it hopefully won’t disrupt your studies.

MYTH #5“It is too

complicated”

Voting is simple, all you have to do is go to www.sussexstudent.com/vote

Log in using your Sussex username and password, then click on the positions you want to vote for.

Information about the candidates will be available here so if you haven’t had a chance to read them you can do it before voting. The Students’ Union uses the

Alternative Vote System, which allows you to rank candidates in order of preference.

If you decide to nominate yourself as a candidate, our online nomination form is designed to be straightforward. You just fill in a few details about yourself and have the opportunity to upload your photo and why people should vote for you.

If you are unable to use our online nomination form just email returning@ussu.sussex.ac.ukfor assistance.

MYTH #6“I’m not sure it’s

for me, I’m happy with

things at Sussex”

You don’t have to have an endless list of big changes you’d like to

make to vote or nominate yourself.

If you choose to nominate yourself there is nothing wrong with putting together a simple manifesto with small suggestions. Sometimes it is small changes that can make a big difference. Why not ask your friends if they have any ideas for things they’d like to see changed?

Being an officer is partly about giving feedback on behalf of students to the University and Students’ Union. This could be things that work well and should be increased or ideas to improve things.

MYTH #7

“There’s no point,

you’ll never change

anything”

Students have been instrumental in introducing big changes at Sussex

over the years...

The introduction of 24 hour opening in the Library, how societies are funded, how the University’s disciplinary procedures work and more.

There are also lots of examples of smaller changes that improve things for students, and many of these have been led by elected students.

MYTH #8“I don’t

have the right

experience to nominate

myself”

You don’t need any prior experience to put yourself forward

in an election.

It is up to students to decide who has the best suggestions and enthusiasm, it isn’t like going for a job interview where someone looks over your CV.

There are also no particular types of experience that mean you’re more likely to win an election than someone else. You don’t have to have been a member of a sports club, written for the Badger or have been a Student Rep to run for the full-time Activities Officer, Communications Officer or Education Officer roles for instance.

Experiences like these can provide a useful insight into how the Students’ Union and University function but are by no means essential.

MYTH #9“Someone

else is more likely to

win”

Most people who nominate themselves believe this, but

someone’s got to win.

With thousands of students voting there is really no guarantees who will win. You might think that

someone else has more experience, more friends or is just more likely to win but there are no guarantees with elections. There are often cases where people

who didn’t think they’d win are elected.

MYTH #10

“I won’t win without

a big campaign

team”

Having friends to help you with your campaign can be useful,

whether this is just encouraging words or a team of people to hand out flyers, but this isn’t

essential. Plenty of people have won elections working on their own, especially with online communication being so widely used now.

Sometimes candidates running in the same set of elections end up helping each other out and it can be a great way to get to know other people so don’t worry about working on your own.

For more information go to www.sussexstudent.com/elections

Each year, students are elected to a variety of positions within the Students’ Union. This ensures that students are making decisions about how the Students’ Union

operates so we are student-led.

Students nominate themselves, i.e. put themselves forward and tell us that they’d like to be elected to a particular position. These students then campaign to be elected by persuading people to vote for them. All

students can then vote online for the person they would like to be elected.

We use the Alternative Vote (AV) system, which allows voters to rank the elections candidates in order of

preference, to calculate the winner. This allows voters to rank the election candidates in order of preference. We will announce the results when voting has finished and

the winners take up their postions in July.