Past Election Results

Omar Gharbiyeh (elected)

Over the last four months, I have had the honour of working as the UTSU’s VP, Public and University Affairs. I learned how to lobby and advocate for your interests, about the University’s extensive bureaucracy, and made connections with people at all levels of administration and Government. If elected President, my priorities include following through with the SDSF campaign, demanding the University improve its response to gender based violence on campus, advocating for international students, pushing for a proactive and predictable response to pandemic contingencies, organizing for dining hall food security, and making our institution front-facing and responsive to students.

Link to website: www.omarforpres.com

Harvi Karatha

I’m running for President to represent your voices and concerns. I will push to lower tuition fees for international and domestic students and freeze tuition fee increases for the upcoming years. I am committed to reviewing UMLAP, increasing access to culturally-aware mental health services, and expanding the university’s funding for mental health-based student groups. I am dedicated to holding the administration accountable for their response to survivors and pushing for a new, student-created, trauma-informed policy (focused on confidentiality and prioritization) for the Sexual Violence Prevention and Support Centre. I will work alongside all students to create strategic, systematic change.

Link to website: www.voteharvi.net 

Jerico Raguindin

As President, I’ll build the necessary bridges with students, unions, and classrooms so we can effectively demand lower tuition, policy changes, improve services like the UTSU’s peer support program, and spread awareness. I commit to centralizing support resources, providing simple checklist updates on the UTSU’s campaigns, reestablishing to students what the UTSU does, and reinvigorating student life. As VUSAC President, I’m very experienced in navigating complex bureaucracies, harmful policy, non-answers from administration, and tokenizing consultation. With this, I commit to holding UofT accountable to anti-racism, mental health and sexual violence support, climate justice, decolonization, and more.

Link to Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jerico.rag/

Bo Zhao (this candidate withdrew their name from the election)

Hi there! My name is Bo and I am a 3rd year Civil Engineering student running to be your UTSU president to advocate for your needs as students! I’ve served as president this year for my program’s student society and have led initiatives in academic advocacy, developing student community and upgrading common spaces for a better student experience for my program. If elected as your UTSU president, I want to restore faith in our student societies by building up our student communities, address issues with injustices and transparency, prevent academic burnout and provide better access to mental health services for students.

Link to website: https://tinyurl.com/BoforUTSU

Ying J Chow (no statement given)

Dermot O’Halloran (elected)

Hi! My name is Dermot and I’m a 4th year music student. I’ve had the pleasure of being your VP Pro Fac and VP Operations at the UTSU before, where we expanded the Student Aid Program and launched a series of finance and governance reforms. With my prior experience and the ideas I have for the future which can be found in my platform, I’m asking that you consider electing me as your Vice-President Operations once again. If elected, I will work hard to make the UTSU more accessible, meaningful, and student-facing. Thank you.

Victoria Liu (Elected)

Hi everyone! I am running for VP PUA to advocate for your voice and needs. Going to university during COVID is stressful. I am committed to working with the administration to expand culturally appropriate mental health services, UTSU’ peer support program, and the UMLAP review. I am also dedicated to advocate for lower tuition fees, which includes advocating for freezing tuition increase, fighting the OSAP cuts, eliminate deferral fees for tuition incurred, and the same degree same fee campaign. Finally, I hope to increase professional experiences. This involves creating partnerships with businesses that reserve jobs for UofT students. Thank you! Please find out more details about my platform on the website and Instagram page: www.vote4victoria.net. My Instagram is @_victorialiu.

Harvi Karatha 

My name’s Harvi, and I’m running to revolutionize UofT as we know it. If elected, I will advocate for you in university governance and political decisions with my platform based on 4 major foci: 1) Better Mental Health Support 2) Making University More Accessible & Affordable 3) Trauma-Informed Support for Survivors 4) Prominent Political Engagement. With the upcoming municipal & provincial elections, I will lobby to finally raise marginalized student voices and concerns in front of candidates. From reviewing UMLAP to supporting the Same Degree, Same Fee campaign, allow me to work tirelessly to better our UofT experience.

Sruthy Balakumar 

The reason why I wanted to run is mainly about grants, scholarships and overall funding the university gives to students. I want to increase the funding the university allocates for students and make sure that more of this funding is allocated for grants and scholarships for both domestic and international students. I believe that students deserve these grants, especially due to the increasing prices of all other aspects of our lives. My position will be acting as a liaison between the university and the government to ensure the financial stability of students.

Sarah Rana (Elected)

For years, I’ve worked in equity: I’m the social outreach officer of Uyghur Rights Advocacy Project; I’m the co-founder of #APIpit, the first Asian & Pacific Islander pitch-event raising awareness on API discrimination & connecting artists to industry executives. I’m an officer for an international Kashmiri organization & the social advocacy sub-committee chair of Hart House Debates Dialogue, running annual events. I research for TCF to fund education in Pakistan. I work with equity internationally; I write letters to the United-Nations Rapporteur, communicating equity concerns in the UN for persecuted groups. I hope to bring my equity experiences to UTSU.

Jessie Wu 

No statement.

Muskan Nagra

No statement.

Jerico Raguindin 

I’m running for VP Equity to create an effective united student voice, placing marginalized voices at the forefront. I will expand equity training to involve students across campus, create a forum for supporting equity efforts, and track UofT’s actions. Recognizing nobody, including myself, is able to represent everyone, it’s important to listen to all issues and more importantly ensure these concerns generate change. My extensive experience, as VUSAC President, in navigating complex bureaucracies, harmful policy, non-answers from administration, and tokenizing consulation has taught me how to engage UofT’s commitments to anti-racism, mental health, sexual violence, climate justice, decolonization, and more. Link: www.instagram.com/jericoforutsuequity/ 

Abidur Rahman 

Hello everyone, I am Abidur Rahman, a 3rd year student! Equity, to me, is more than lip service as I plan on making practical reforms. These include more targeted scholarships & alternatives to Top-hat based marking. I also want to expand our Student Refugee Program & include more diverse workshops in our anti-oppression week. Mental health is also a top priority, including getting an easier intake process and less burden of proof on students. My past roles as the mentorship and student life coordinators for my college do make me a strong candidate here, so please vote for me!

Ying J Chow 

No statement.

Elizabeth Shechtman (Elected)

As Vice President of Student Life, I want every student to know that their passions beyond academics are important and that they have my full support to help them. University should be about the experiences and memories you have, whether that be through UTSU hosted events or joining clubs. I will advocate for transparency on guidelines for extracurriculars and ensure that all events held by the UTSU are accessible. My experience at The Varsity as an associate news editor, along with various other roles, has helped me learn the different procedures about UTSU, which will help me succeed as VPSL.

Paavni Grover

No statement.

Maria Ebeid (Elected)

I’m a second-year student running for VP-Professional Faculties. The past year, I had the honour of serving professional faculties as a board director on the UTSU. I aim to work closely with students to ensure that their experiences are improved and become a voice to represent students of all faculties. I want to make mental health services more reachable and accessible to those in professional faculties through 24-hour mental health services. I also want to work with prioritizing elective course enrolment for professional faculty students. I will strive to ensure more accessibility, equity, and advocacy to those in professional faculties.

This position will have three (3) elected representatives.

Samantha Kelly Chow (Elected)

Hi New College! My name is Samantha Kelly Chow, and I am running to be re-elected as one of yourNew College Board of Directors! As a Board Director, I want to continue to advocate for you all by addressing your concerns and allowing your voices to be heard. If re-elected, I hope to improve your student experience by working with different committees, such as finance, equity, clubs, student aid, and services.

Mouaid Alim (Elected)

Hello New College! My name is Mouaid Alim. I am your current VP of Student Life at the New College Student Council and I’m excited to be running as your UTSU representative. I promise to take an unapologetic stance to ensure we are well represented in the wider UofT community and best advocate for you through equitable processes that improve the university experience for all students. As VP of Student life, I was able to interact with New College students and better understand student concerns and so I look forward to advocating for you and promoting an improved student experience!

Faiz Jan (Elected)

No statement.

This position will have three (3) elected representatives.

Nicholas Merrithew (Elected)

Hey everyone! My name is Nicholas Merrithew, and I am a second years student studying Anthropology, Sociology, and Political Science. Being a part of the UTSU has been an amazing experience and I am excited to be running for re-election on the Board of Directors representing University College. I am looking forward to working alongside fellow Directors to better advocate for students in UC, and to build a positive environment improving student life. Thanks for all the support! @nick_s46

This position will have three (3) elected representatives.

Rayan Alim (Elected)

Hello St. Mikes! I am excited to be re-running to serve another term as your UTSU Director! I would love to continue working on some of the initiatives I have been advocating for. In the finance committee, I advocated for financial transparency, breaking down the UTSU’s budget and ensuring students know exactly where their money is going. In the equity committee, I was part of planning the ‘Expression Against Oppression’ Week. This upcoming year, I have a genuine desire to establish the Student Commons into a lively space for student activity and always continue advocating for equitable and transparent governance.

Ron Ulitsky (Elected)

Hi everyone! My name is Ron and I am running to represent CompSci students on the UTSU Board of Directors.
As CS students, we are constantly solving problems. Writing proofs, debugging, and trying to decipher what in the world your partner’s code does. So many of us get caught up in this, that we tend to miss the problems that we run into on a day-to-day basis as UofT students. My goal is to address these issues on your behalf, so that you can focus on your problem sets.

Rebecca Sy (Elected)

As Vice-President of the UTSU First Year Council, I have a solid understanding of the necessary processes, and strong connections to faculty and university staff to effectively initiate projects at the UTSU. Some of my past experiences include initiating the First-Year Events Townhall, Student Needs Census form, Community Scholarship, and Mental Health Care Policy Statement. Further, I developed strong attentiveness, communication, collaboration, and project management skills, which are needed to drive meaningful change. I aim to increase opportunities for student networking with professors, initiate transferable skill development workshops and develop a transparent system to access student resources and events.

Kaitlyn Nitta

Hi! I’m Kaitlyn, and I am honoured to run for Director of Life Sciences. As you can agree, the past two years with COVID have been challenging, and we are now anticipating the university experience we expected. If elected, I plan to organize more social and academic events suited for Life Sci students to encourage networking in a lively and comfortable environment. Your voices are valuable and should be treated as such. This pandemic has affected so many facets of our lives, but I am confident in my abilities to help create the university life we all deserve.

Shakura Kabir

Hello, all! I am Shakura and I’m standing for Life Sciences Director. I am, foremost, a student just like you. I am also an experienced leader, organizer, and mobilizer. I am thrilled at the opportunity of being your voice and your extension! My vision for YOU is crystal clear – ACCESSIBILITY AND NOVELTY. Allow me the opportunity to be your Director, and I will work on making the campus resources (be it research opportunities or even just academic support) streamlined and easy-to-access. I will also work on novelty, and work on creation of new resources and better infrastructure to make your university experience a rewarding one. Vote for SHAKURA, vote for YOUR VISION, vote for a GUIDING HAND!

Ron Reitman

My name is Ron, and I am running for Life Science Director this year! I am a hardworking and passionate student dedicated to having everyone’s voices be heard. There are many different streams in this program, with a group of diverse students in each one. I promise to serve as the voice for all such groups and ensure that your opinions on significant issues and all relevant matters are represented. I am strongly passionate about advocacy for increased academic resources available to students, including past assessment banks and mental health support; I hope to work towards that as your representative.

Phillip Amitan (Elected)

My name is Phillip, and I aim to bring student involvement to the forefront of my Director of Social Sciences campaign. Student needs are my priority, and I will invest all of my efforts into creating more opportunities for skills-development and employment, increasing financial support for all, and overall bettering student livelihoods. The social sciences are draining, so I will speak loudly on topics of mental health for the students who feel that their voices aren’t heard. I will always be available to hear your concerns. Contact me on Facebook/Instagram and through my email, phillip.amitan@mail.utoronto.ca.

Nerissa Feng 

HEY UofT, my name is NERISSA FENG and I’m thrilled to announce that I’m running for your next DIRECTOR of SOCIAL SCIENCE! As a second-year Political Science student, I understand the difficulties that Social Science students may face. My previous experiences in multiple organizations and student council will enable me to strive for the best. 🙂 Thank you and I look forward to representing all your questions, comments, and concerns. Voting for Nerissa means: – Increased Activities & Support – Smooth transition to in-person learning – Equity, Diversity & Inclusion – Make YOUR VOICE heard!!

Melody Teng (Elected)

Hi, I’m Melody and I am running to be the director of Rotman Commerce! I would be honored to represent you in the student union. My goal as the director will focus on Career Opportunities and Student Engagement. I will collaborate with Rotman clubs to introduce more career help events for students to explore their field of interests, as well as fun social events for student networking! I’ll also reach out through surveys to understand what you care about and report the feedback to UTSU! With my commitment, I am confident that I can serve your needs with excellence.

Aarnav Sethy 

Dear fellow students,

I am running on a campaign to steer Rotman Commerce to change its priorities. For far too long, we have neglected our health and prioritised everything else. This culture stems from deeply engraved and regressive ideas about sacrificing everything to achieve our goals. However, I believe we can achieve our goals while simultaneously being happy and healthy. This can only be done if the UTSU has a member who refuses to compromise and believes that it’s never too late to start the conversation & take action. Vote for Change, Vote for Happiness, Vote for Aarnav Sethy.

Link to website: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aarnav-sethy-7a433b173

Muhammad Ibrahim 

Hey! I’m Ibrahim and I’m running to be the representative of your voices and needs! My platform revolves around three core virtues: integrity, prudence, and dedication. If elected, I would act as a bridge between students and UTSU to act for the interests of the community. I am looking for ways to increase funding in support systems for international students, further peer support systems, and collaborate with Rotman Commerce Clubs on initiatives to advance the development of present Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion commitments. With vigour and ambition, coupled with my compassion and peoples’ skills, I can guarantee excellence.

Instagram link: https://www.instagram.com/ibrahimforutsu/

Noa Sabbah (Elected)

No statement.