By Lenny Osler, News Reporter
Your vote determines who will champion your academic and personal interests at the university level. Who best represents you? Make sure your voice is heard.
You can vote here until 9 pm Thursday 12 March. Find candidate manifestos here.
Cara Hene
Union Affairs Officer requires a knowledge of the internal governance structures of the SU. They play a major role in student democracy events like Student Council.
They are responsible for representing Bristol students on a variety of platforms, from meeting with the Vice-Chancellor to lobbying MPs for students’ concerns at Parliament at All-Party Parliamentary Group events.
Epigram hosted candidate interviews, with four of the five candidates appearing to discuss their campaigns, the skills and experience they intend to bring to the role, and why students should vote for them in the 2026 SU elections.
This year's candidates are: Sam Brace / SU SUQUES-COX, Varenya Mehrotra, Ralph Vincent, Robyn Clark and Louise Duck
*If a candidate did not attend our interview panel, nor respond to our questions over email, they have not been profiled in this article.*
Sam Brace / SU SUQUES-COX
Sam Brace, campaigning under the name ‘SU SUQUES-COX’, described his plans to ‘update the bylaws’, ‘inject billions into the SU treasury’, and make ‘everyone a member’ of the SU.
In his candidate profile, he satirically declared that the ‘Vice-Chancellor deserved [a] pay rise.’
Sam also indicated his desire to make the Richmond Building ‘Grade I listed’, while stating it ‘simply isn’t hot enough.’
Discussing his plans for student democracy, Sam said:
‘Have you ever read 1984? I mean, everyone knows who Big Brother is. So yeah, I’ll probably just do that.’
Questioned on how he would represent students’ interests, Sam told Epigram that ‘taking on big corporations is really my bread and butter.’
‘If you vote SU Suques-Cox, you will be satisfied’ he maintains.
Varenya Mehrotra
Varenya Mehrotra told Epigram her campaign centres around both increasing awareness of student democracy, and ‘removing democratic roadblocks to student group concerns.’
Elaborating on her plans for increasing student engagement with the SU, Varenya said:
‘I don’t just mean putting pictures of the full-time officers on university buildings or sending multiple emails about democratic events.’
She discussed her intention to provide ‘training and advocacy’ along with ‘certification for having attended a democratic event’, in order to promote participation.
Varenya intends to ‘lessen the bureaucracy that a student needs to go through to have their issues heard’, by creating a ‘clear chain of escalation and communication’ between Union Affairs Officer and students.
Asked about her experience in representing students, Varenya discussed her work as co-chair of the SU Board of Trustees, and as president of Indian Society, with whom she lobbied in Parliament on behalf of Indian students.
Ralph Vincent
Ralph Vincent summarised his campaign as consisting of four policy priorities: ‘connecting communities, offering opportunities, opening up transparency, and leveling up our democracy.’
Discussing his plans to increase student engagement, Ralph said that ‘words like ‘Democratic Standards Committee’ and ‘bylaws’ are not accessible to students.
He advocated presenting the structure, institutions and processes of the SU in a way that students can understand and engage with, rather than what he argued is currently ‘long, boring and hard to read.’
Ralph referred to his experience as a society president for a year, and ‘a student leader for three years.’ He told Epigram:
‘What I can bring to this role that nobody else can is three years of being so deep in the performing arts societies that you forget what being embarrassed is, you develop a sense of conviction and purpose, which is ultimately what's necessary for representing the interests of the students.’
Robyn Clark
Robyn Clark summed up her campaign as ‘all about making the SU more open, responsive, and accessible’, as well as focussing on ‘everyday issues’ such as ‘keeping costs down, particularly in Senate House, it’s too expensive.’
Her plans for increasing student engagement include ‘office hours for the Full-Time Officers (FTOs) where students can drop in’, in order to combat what she described as a perception of the SU among students as ‘distant and confusing.’
Robyn advocated online and hybrid meetings to improve access to student democracy, as well as a greater focus on SU accountability through Q&A sessions for FTOs.
She also mentioned her experience as ‘a student leader for three years’, as well as a society president for a year. Robyn said she is ‘very comfortable’ organising events and advocating for members of societies - something she cited as useful as Union Affairs Officer.
Referencing her degree in Politics, Robyn said she had ‘a lot of knowledge about institutions of government and how to navigate formal environments’, arguing this would help her represent students to those ‘in positions of authority.’
Louise Duck
Louise Duck, who communicated with Epigram via video in full duck attire, summarised her campaign with a focus on improving the room booking system for students, citing the struggle Islamic Society has had accessing larger spaces for prayers.
Having worked at the Welcome Desk in Senate House, Louise described the struggles students face when booking spaces. She advocated for a simpler and more streamlined booking system accessible to students.
Discussing her plans to counter student apathy towards the SU, Louise mentioned creating Course Rep forums, allowing Reps to ‘meet people in their year to get their views’ and empower student voices within the University.
Detailing her experience of advocacy in high-profile meetings, Louise said she has been ‘lobbying an MP consistently since the age of 12’ on issues such as knife crime, domestic violence and mental health.
She also mentioned her time on the Green Party campaign team for the Gorton and Denton by-election, and her appearance on ITV News as part of an ‘Action Day’ for the environment.
Featured image: Epigram / Suzanne Célérier
Who will you be voting for as Union Affairs Officer?
