CU Student Government printed buttons for voters. (Photo courtesy of Wyatt Ryder/CU Student Government)
Despite soft-campus closure amid the global coronavirus pandemic, University of Colorado Student Government will continue to hold its spring election from April 6 at 8 a.m. until April 9 at 8 p.m. During this, time students can vote through BuffPortal for three new tri-executives and four representatives-at-large.
Tri-executives serve as student body presidents while representatives at-large sit on Legislative Council. Two tickets are running this year, Create and J for Justice, along with four independent representative at-large candidates.
Unable to do so in person, all campaigns have been active on social media and will continue throughout the election week. While both the scheduled candidate debate and the town hall have been canceled in response to COVID-19 safety measures, the CU Independent has compiled all that you need to know about next week’s election.
Create
All three candidates on the Create ticket are running for tri-executive. The ticket is running on a platform of “consistency” and “community,” seeking to create consistency law enforcement, university administration, education affordability and environmental standards. Create aims to learn about and understand the issues facing minority students on campus so that CUSG can better serve those populations.
Candidates:
- Molly Frommelt: Frommelt is currently the director of Legislative Affairs within CUSG’s executive cabinet. As an international affairs major with a minor in French and German, she has a passion for social justice and engaging in her community. During the past two years in CUSG, she has represented CU Boulder in the Colorado General Assembly as well as in both the United States Senate and House of Representatives in Washington, D.C.
- Isaiah Chavous: Chavous is a junior studying political science and business. He is currently the strategic communications coordinator for CUSG Legislative Council. One of Chavous’s goals is to create a “positive footprint” on the world by creating multimedia projects, films and businesses.
- George Conway: Conway was elected to CUSG in the fall 2019 elections as a representative at-large. A Chick Evans Scholar, Conway is currently a sophomore studying finance and accounting with a math minor. He wants to create a better experience for students both in and out of class.
J for Justice
Both candidates on the J for Justice ticket are running for representative at-large. The ticket is focusing on mental health help accessibility, inclusion and sustainability. J for Justice hopes to implement environmental sustainability initiatives on campus to reduce CU Boulder’s footprint on the environment.
Candidates:
- Jack Zweck-Bronner: Zweck-Bronner is currently a freshman studying political science and evolutionary and ecological biology. This year he served on the Residence Housing Association where he created community events within his dorm. If elected he hopes to create a more inclusive campus and reduce CU Boulder’s environmental footprint.
- Julia Foley: Foley is currently a freshman studying political science and statistics. She is involved with Model United Nations and served on the senate for the Residence Housing Association. In her spare time, Foley is active on the CU Intermurals soccer team.
Independent candidates
Four candidates are running independently for representative at-large: Rachael Vela, Emmanuel Howard, Emmett Grundy and Juan De Dios Velasquez-Jimenez.
Rachel Vela: Vela is a sophomore studying psychology with minors in leadership and statistics. She is involved in the mock trial club, MixedCU, creative writing club, Marvel movie club and the United Mexican American Students y Movimiento Estudiantil Chicanx de Aztlán (UMAS y MEXA).
Vela was involved in student government in high school and believes this will help her in the role of representative at-large. She wants to create a more inclusive, fun and safe campus.
Emmanuel Howard: Howard is currently a freshman studying international affairs. He grew up in the Democratic Republic of Congo until moving to North Carolina in 2009. He is involved in Trio and Guardian Scholars, a program for foster children entering college.
Howard’s campaign runs on creating better diversity programs for students by allocating funds for low-income students and minorities. He also hopes to increase programs for students with disabilities, within the LGBTQ+ community and foreign exchange students who may be unfamiliar with the university system.
Emmett Grundy: Grundy is a junior pursuing a degree in communication with a minor in political science. He is involved with Radio 1190’s Airboard and spent last semester volunteering on Andrew Yang’s presidential campaign. If elected as representative at-large, he hopes to strengthen CU Boulder’s education programs to give graduates the tools they need to excel in the workforce.
With CUSG’s $25 million budget, Grundy wants to increase student engagement. For example, Grundy wants to create an expansion of CU’s NightRide service to allow for golf carts to help move students around campus on the weekends. This would create jobs for students and give opportunities to avoid rideshare programs unvetted by the university.
Juan De Dios Velasquez-Jimenez: Velasquez-Jimenez is a first-generation college student and American citizen. If Velasquez-Jimenez could describe himself in two words it would be “Sko and Buffs.”
If elected as representative at-large, he hopes to reduce waste at CU Boulder and create a more inclusive campus for minorities and seeks to be an advocate for his fellow students on campus.
Contact CU Independent Senior News Editor Tory Lysik at tory.lysik@colorado.edu.
