Each spring, UP students elect student leaders to the Associated Students of the University of Portland (ASUP). Next year, however, the election process will look a bit different.
Instead of voting for executive board members and senators simultaneously, students will cast their votes in two separate elections. This change follows the unanimous passage of bill S.B. 23-24-008 last spring, which amended the ASUP Elections Committee’s bylaws to allow for staggered elections.
Under the new bill, the executive board election will take place before spring break, while the senate elections will be held after the break.
Previously, if a student leader ran for an executive board position and lost, they wouldn’t have the option to run for a senate seat. According to ASUP Vice President Stephanie Vasquez, separating the races allows student leaders to pursue executive board positions without worrying that it’s their only opportunity to serve in ASUP’s governing body.
For students, the change means having a broader pool of candidates to choose from.
“I think these new changes will really promote choice, which I think is what is needed for a functioning democracy,” Vasquez said. “I feel like, especially in the past, it would just be someone running, and then there wouldn't be an opposition or anything. So they would just kind of get into that role. I think some of our previous leaders were amazing, but I feel like it doesn't really give students the choice to pick who they want to represent them.”
The bill also grants the vice president the authority to decide whether the executive board and senate elections will remain separate. This means the 2025-26 ASUP election could either continue with the change or revert to the prior process. For the change to become permanent, it would require approval from the student body.
Although the bill’s continuous implementation depends on the next vice president, ASUP Director of Communications Sophia Olea VanCamp believes the change will encourage more students to run for office and provide new student leaders an opportunity to gain experience in student government.
“If people knew how much money they could make, the flexibility of the schedule, [or] they want to work at school but can't afford to not to get paid like a lot of [current] club leaders, this is such a great opportunity,” VanCamp said. “...I feel like it's helped me learn and understand a lot on how to move about this type of environment [higher education] if I were to work in this type of space. It's really cool.”
Kimberly Cortez is the Editor-in-Chief of The Beacon. They can be reached at cortez25@up.edu.
