The Graduate Students’ Association (GSA) will be holding its 2019 elections from March 20-21.
The nomination period took place from March 4-8, and the campaign period will take place from March 11-15.
Graduate students will be able to vote for the next president, vice-president (operations) vice-president (external), vice-president (finance), vice president (academic), three members to the university Senate, and three members to the Graduate Faculty Board.
Increasing voter turnout is a big goal for the GSA during election season this year, according to Mohammed Akbar, a office and communications director with the GSA. He said graduate student engagement is hard to increase.
“With graduate students, it’s a little bit different becuase they are really hard to find,” he added, noting that graduate students tend to stay in their departments instead of being on the go around campus.
For the past two years, there has only been one slate running in the elections. Last year, only 6.2 per cent of eligible voters actually voted in the elections—about 242 of the 3,900 graduate student population from last year, according to previous coverage by the Charlatan.
A campaign forum will be held on March 18 at the GSA lounge on the sixth floor of the University Centre.
From March 20-21, voting will take place in these locations across campus:
- Minto Foyer
- 2nd floor Loeb (by the tunnels)
- Outside Mike’s Place (2nd floor UC)
- 2nd Floor Tory next to the Atrium/Galleria
- River Building Foyer
File photo
