LIVE: USU Executive Elections 2020

Ellie Stephenson reports.

Today I’ll be watching the USU’s Special Meeting of the Incoming Board of Directors. It’s this meeting where the new President, Vice-President, Honorary Treasurer and Honorary Secretary will be elected. There are a number of other positions up for grabs: the Director of Student Publications (who reads and approves Pulp articles); spots on the Finance, Remuneration, Electoral, Awards and Clubs and Societies Committees; and holders of the Wom*n’s, Queer, Environment, Ethnocultural, International Student and Disabilities Portfolios.

There have been tumultuous negotiations for the position of president, with ever-shifting alliances rotating around three key players: Benny Shen, Nick Forbutt and Irene Ma. Benny and Nick were initially viewed as the key contenders before Irene also launched a bid for President, prompting the other two to team up. However, it’s likely there have been some last minute deals and promises made. Negotiations over the Executive typically involve the trading of positions as well as potential commitments to factional support in future elections - whatever happens this morning could easily impact the SRC Elections in September.

One significant controversy at this Election has been the role of Senate Appointed Directors. The SADs, Marie Leech and Jane Drummond, are appointed to the Board by the University Senate rather than elected by students. Recently, a ruling by acting Returning Officer Dane Luo decided that the SADs could not vote for the new Executive. This was appealed to the Electoral Arbiter, who agreed with the ruling . Ultimately though, the Senate intervened to reject the change to the USU Constitution last year which allowed for the ruling in the first place, effectively meaning the SADs could once again have a vote. This raises some significant questions about the leverage the Senate has over the USU, especially given the Senate is notoriously undemocratic, with only two elected student representatives and a tendency for secrecy.

10:04am - Returning Officer James Hoare opens the meeting and does the Acknowledgement of Country. Hoare, who is calling from America, draws parallels between the police brutality and systemic racism in the US and in Australia, comparing the killings of George Floyd and David Dungay. “We need to stand up to prevent any future deaths in respect to the lives that have already been lost”, he says. The USU offers its “unconditional support” to the current protest and calls on students to attend the vigil occurring on Saturday.

10:09am - We move the Election of the Executive. Hoare begins by explaining the voting process; ballots will be sent over email. Nick Forbutt nominates Irene Ma and Benny Shen nominates himself.

Irene begins her speech with a brief Acknowledgement of Country and tells the Board that “when [she] first tried ginger fish at the ABS terrace” she never imagined she could become the USU President. She expresses a desire to represent marginalised students and thanks the outgoing Executive and USU staff. She emphasises the need for unity, saying the USU will be “stronger together”.

Benny says he has been talking with the Board about his “values and thoughts” over the last few months. He says the USU made campus “a home away from home” and “helped me find my feet in a new country and a new home”. He says he will be “open, compassionate, responsible and understanding” and has worked hard to become ready to be the USU President.

Irene is declared elected! My chess graphic is vindicated.

10:24am - On to the Vice President Elections. Nick Forbutt (NLS) is elected unopposed. He speaks, beginning with an Acknowledgement of Country and continuing with a summary of what he has learnt about student leadership over the last year. He identifies “the need for recovery” for the COVID-stricken USU as a key issue for the organisation, as well as “transparency”. He wants to “consider more than just the next 12 months” during his time on Executive. He speaks about how the USU made him feel welcome on campus, having moved to Sydney from rural Australia, and argues that the USU should ensure all students are made to feel as though they belong at USyd.

10:28am - Now for the Election of the Honorary Treasurer. Irene nominates Cady Brown (ModLib). She’s elected unopposed. Cady emphasises the importance of maintaining the USU’s solvency. “I have a brain”, she tells us, “and one of my biggest brain moments was supporting Irene Ma for President”. She says “it’s our people who are our most valuable asset”, suggesting that the USU’s recovery is essential to allow it to keep supporting students. She thanks outgoing Honorary Treasurer Maya Eswaran for her support and guidance. She asks for the trust of the students “even if the accumulating pile of online shopping in the corner of my bedroom says something otherwise”.

10:32am - Next up is the Election of the Honorary Secretary. Irene nominates Benny Shen, who is elected unopposed. Benny thanks everyone.

10:33am - We move to the Election of the Director of Student Publications. As Honorary Secretary, Benny is automatically a DSP. Ben Hines (Libdependent) and Vikki Qin nominate for the remaining two positions. They are elected unopposed.

Vikki makes a short speech thanking people for the chance to DSP, saying she loves to read Pulp (thanks Vikki!) and suggesting that she will be able to help the development of Pulp’s multilingual content.

Ben also thanks everyone for their support. He says he’s “had a major passion for journalism for a long time” and he’s “incredibly eager to get started”.

10:36am - The next item on the agenda is the Election of Directors to Committees. Nick Rigby (ModLib) nominates for the Finance Committee, where if elected, he’ll be the Deputy Chair. He’s elected unopposed. He describes it as a “real honour” and promises to be “the best Deputy Chair that I can be”.

Prudence Wilkins-Wheat (Switchroots) and Ben Hines are both nominated for the Remunerations Committee. Prudence talks about how COVID-19 has affected HR and Remuneration and the opportunity to hire a new CEO. She speaks about her role on the SRC Executive, which gives her experience with HR decision-making. She also points to her experience working in the USU “for almost a year”, which she says gives her a unique perspective on the “impact and implications” of the Committee’s decisions.

Ben Hines, in classic debater form, says it’s important “to do a little bit of framing”, by identifying this Committee as particularly important for the USU. He argues that this is one Committee to “avoid politicising”, saying that “certain campus groups have vested interests” in the USU’s HR decisions. He gives eight reasons why he is suited for the role: work experience in a financial firm in China, his independence as a candidate, his financial literacy, his willingness to dedicate “time and effort” to the role, his desire to work with the SADs, an “interest in management consulting”, work experience as a paralegal, and his studies as a law student.

Connor tells us that when he was on the Committee, he always said it “renumeration” not “remuneration”. He warns other not to make the same mistake.

Ben Hines is elected to the position.

10:48am - The next position is on the Electoral Committee. Prudence runs for this one and is elected unopposed. She says “keen to do elections”.

10:49am - Next up, the Awards Committee. Nick Rigby nominates. Returning Officer James Hoare is checking if Nick can run because it’s unclear if he’s technically a first year director. Turns out, he’s not eligible for the position. Belinda Thomas nominates instead. She is elected, saying “thank you very much for believing in me… this was not something I was expecting to hear this morning”.

10:51am - The next position is the Deputy Chair of the Clubs and Societies Committee. Ruby Lotz (NLS), Belinda Thomas (Unity) and Vikki Qin are nominated.

Ruby speaks first, beginning with an Acknowledgement of Country and emphasising the need to listen to and “actively platform” Indigenous voices. She then explains that she loves the inclusiveness of the C&S Program. “There’s seriously a society for everyone”. She says the Program has been “extremely formative” and the opportunity to start her own society has given her a strong understanding of the role of the Program.

Now Belinda speaks, describing C&S as “my ride or die since day one” on campus. She points to her role on the Executive of the Conservatorium Students Association as valuable experience. She has observed that “the C&S Program currently isn’t perfect” but that is it “vitally important” to enrich it.

Vikki withdraws on the basis that she really likes the other two candidates.

Connor Wherrett tells us that the C&S Committee was restored only last year, as the Board recognise student involvement in the program is important.

SAD Marie Leech leaves the meeting, proxying to Connor.

Ruby is elected to the C&S Committee.

11:00am - Now for the Elections of Portfolio Holders.

First up: the Wom*n’s Portfolio. The Director who is elected must identify as a woman. Cady Brown nominates Belinda Thomas. Ruby Lotz nominates herself.

Belinda speaks first. She says she wasn’t planning on running for the position, but says she feels the role is ”important” for the organisation. She reflects on her personal journey to be proud of her identity, and suggests that the USU can play a role in supporting others’ identities. She says her “vision” for the portfolio is “creative” and focussed on connecting women.

Ruby describes the position as “a huge honour and a huge responsibility” to speak up on behalf of “all women and non-binary people”, promising to “listen to the wants and needs” of women on campus, potentially working with the Women’s Collective. She points to her commitment to fighting sexual violence and acknowledges the intersectional nature of gender inequality, promising to work with other Portfolio holders to reflect that. She draws on her role as SRC Sexual Harassment Officer as valuable experience for the position.

Belinda gets the position.

11:07am - The next Election is for the Queer Portfolio, which must be held by a Director who identifies as queer. Nick Forbutt is the only eligible candidate, so will fill the position again. “Thank you so much, it’s great to be queer”, he says.

11:08am - Prudence Wilkins-Wheat nominates for the Environment Portfolio. She’s elected unopposed. She says “it’s really important the we acknowledge that the climate crisis intersects many other issues” like workers’ rights and Indigenous justice. She encourages people to attend the Black Lives Matter vigil on Saturday.

11:10am - The Ethnocultural Portfolio is next; it is autonomous. Eve Wang is nominated. Belinda Thomas nominates herself.

Eve speaks about her work to include international students in the USU. She also speaks in support of the Black Lives Matter movement.

Belinda speaks “as the daughter of an immigrant”, emphasising the need to support the identities of people of colour and to participate in the fight for Indigenous justice. She says she’ll also be attending the BLM vigil (the Facebook event is linked above).

Eve gets the position.

11:15am - Vikki nominates for the International Student Portfolio. She’s elected unopposed. She thanks everyone, and does an Acknowledgement of Country. “As an international student here, coming to Australia has brought a lot of culture shock to me”, she says, pointing to the USU’s role in supporting international students like herself.

11:17am - The final Portfolio is the Disabilities Portfolio. There are no nominations; it seems there are no Directors who fulfil the requirements of the position. Therefore the role will be guided by relevant community groups.

11:19am - All done! James Hoare congratulates everyone, counselling Directors to work together even if they didn’t get the positions they wanted.

Irene will be doing a Q&A live on the USU’s Facebook.

Thanks everyone for reading our coverage!

Note: this article has been amended to note that Nick Forbutt nominated Irene Ma for President, not Connor Wherrett.