Opinion | Why you should vote in the SU elections

By Alice Clarke, Third Year History

Election time has come around again! Voting for the Bristol SU elections opened on Tuesday, giving students the chance to elect fellow students in various roles across the SU. There are around 600 representatives elected twice a year from course reps, faculty reps to full time officers and network chairs.

These representatives stand up for students on a wide range of issues and act as a port of call for anyone who wants to voice their wants, needs or suggestions for how the university experience could be made better. You may know someone who is running or you may have never heard of these elections before, but either way it is important to have your say!

Every vote counts in elections like these, with sometimes the results coming down to just a handful of votes. This is why everyone should make sure their voice is heard and cast a vote.

The elections are a way that, as a student, you can have a solid and concrete impact on the policies the SU follows and therefore everyone's university experience. Very real improvements and u-turns in the university have been due to the impact of the SU and this is only possible with the work of those elected by the student body.

So far this academic year the full-time officer team, elected last March, have made progress on a range of issues. Every student will have noticed changes that only could have been possible through the work of the SU whilst at Bristol, even if they didn't know it.

One notable example of the SU's impact is getting the university to U-turn on their decision to have graduations held at Ashton Gate instead of the beloved Wills Memorial Building. They have also campaigned and worked towards safer nights out, sent a delegation of students to COP26, and launched research on consent and sexual harassment at university, amongst many other things.

The full-time officers are not the only people who are up for election however. Reps are up for election in every faculty and course, these are the people who could bring your specific concerns about exams, teaching or content to the university; essentially acting as the messenger between students and the university.

Even if you haven't voted before, make this year your first!  It only takes 5 minutes of your time but can make a big difference to student life.

Voting closes at 10pm on Thursday March 10th and you can find all the candidate manifestos and any more information you need here.

Featured Image: Epigram

Will you be voting in the SU elections? Let us know @EpigramOpinion !