Heriot-Watt elect new student president

Simon Eltringham was elected the next president of the Heriot-Watt University Student Association (HWUSA) this week following one of the most controversial election campaigns in recent memory.

Meanwhile, Michael Bottom was voted in as vice president of services and communications (VPSC) for the coming year.

Both candidates were returned unopposed, with no other nominees challenging for the positions. However, Heriot-Watt students also had the option to vote to re-open nominations (RON).

The elections were overshadowed, to some extent, by a crisis of representation. Earlier this month The Journal reported that two of the seven positions on the HWUSA executive committee were set to go unfilled, with the posts of president and vice president of services and communications uncontested.

Some students expressed disillusionment with those promoting the RON option, seeing them as contributing to voter apathy rather than improving the democratic process.

"Everyone had a fair chance to get themselves nominated and run for president or other positions. I think these hate campaigns are awful. I'm just glad that people like this aren't standing for president as what kind of leader would they make for the student body," one student wrote on the HWUSA elections discussion forum.

However, despite a strong campaign urging students to vote to RON, both Eltringham and Bottom secured comfortable majorities. Eltringham won 739 of the 1135 votes cast in the presidential election while 815 out of 1140 voters opted for Bottom as VPSC.

Eltringham campaigned strongly against the university's decision to cut HWUSA funding by six per cent and pledged to fight to have it reinstated. He also promised to cut unnecessary costs without adversely affecting the level of service and support the students' association provides to the student body.

HWUSA president Ruth Bush praised Michael Bottom's campaign and his engagement with the student body, despite running for an uncontested position.

"Lecture shouts haven’t been done in past year's elections but Michael has been doing them lots and its got students cheering at the end of speeches," she told The Journal.

In the other ballots, Yvonne Yeboah defeated Colin Farquhar in the race for the treasury, and Emma Little won a narrow majority over Rebecca Cashin to become equal opportunities officer. Kerrie Hutchinson was elected vice president of the HWUSA for the university's Scottish Borders Campus.

The results were announced shortly after polls closed at 5pm on Friday 21 February, after nearly a week of voting.

This year's elections saw the introduction of online voting at Heriot-Watt for the first time. The HWUSA website featured video manifestos for each candidate while the discussion forum hosted robust debate throughout the campaign.

Ruth Bush told The Journal that she believes taking the election online had a positive effect on voter turnout. She said: "Going online has had a fantastic effect on our voting and awareness of the elections."

The successful candidates will now work with outgoing student representatives to ensure a smooth transition to the new executive.