The VeSte cargo bike. Photo Dominique Vrouwenvelder There are no elections this year because there are too few candidates. The Student Council has twelve seats, but only twelve students made themselves available, making an election redundant. Despite that, people in Forum could get the impression that there were elections going on, as the three Student Council parties CSF, S&I and VeSte are sharing the stage this week.
‘We play simple games like flip the bottle, Jenga and Mikado’, says Linda Juma of CSF. ‘We hand out treats like lollipops and cookies. During Q&A’s, we talk with students, and we explain, for example, that we are not only a party for Christians but that we represent inclusion in general. On Tuesday, there was a debate with members of the other Student Council parties.’
Trampolines
At the S&I stand, students are invited to draw their vision of an ideal green campus. ‘A seven-year-old girl drew a campus with a lot of trampolines’, says Muskan Mathur of S&I. ‘Of course, she’s not a student yet, but she’s a potential future student.’ S&I also put up an idea board. ‘Students can write ideas on improving the university on post-its and hang it up there.’
VeSte-members built their ‘crate castle’ (a castle made of empty crates of beer that is usually erected during the Student Council elections) on the Forum stage. ‘We hand out blue cotton candy, ride around campus with a VeSte cargo bike, and we offer special promotions with local businesses’, says Wybrig Bakker of VeSte. ‘Also, we try to be present at popular parties and activities in the evening to talk with students.’
Voting
Some students immediately say: ‘Yes, of course I will vote for you’, says Bakker. ‘Then we explain that that is impossible this year as there are no elections now. Next year we will ask for your vote again.’
