JNM&C Students discuss 2024 URSU by-election, referendum 

Low voter turnout reflects uninformed student body, apathetic voters 

In November 2024, The University of Regina Students’ Union (URSU) held a referendum and By-Election. According to the students’ union’s bylaws, URSU is required to hold regular elections to maintain a complete Board of Directors. 

The students’ union approved and had the power to ask students to vote on multiple referendums proposing structural changes to student levy fees, but only asked one referendum question. 

The election was announced in multiple ways, including emails to the student body and via a post on URSU’s public Instagram page on Oct. 11. The Oct. 11 post listed the positions available on URSU’s Board of Directors, the due date for nominations, the span of dates for voting, as well as a referendum question.

The general timeline of the election is determined by the Chief Returning Officer (CRO). According to the Oct. 11 social media announcement, nominations were due by 4 p.m. on Nov. 1 and were followed by a 10-day-long campaigning period lasting from Nov. 3 to Nov. 13. 

Voting began on Nov. 14 and continued until the end of the day on Nov. 15. Students voted to elect the student member representing the Faculty of Arts on URSU’s Board of Directors, as well as on the referendum to increase the Student Emergency Bursary levy fee from $0.25 per student, per semester to $3.00 per student, per semester.

The fund was set up in 2016 with the intention of support students’ fiscal needs. The funds cover both the emergency bursary fund and the emotional wellness fund which students can apply for.

Voting for the position of Director of Arts was restricted to students enrolled in the Faculty of Arts, but all students enrolled in the fall semester could vote towards the referendum. According to the official results released by URSU, 61 students voted to elect the Director of Arts, while 200 students voted in the referendum, two of which abstained.

While the referendum question was announced publicly, no context was provided on URSU’s social media post with respect to why URSU was pursuing a referendum to increase the levy 12 times the present value. URSU also did not release an outline explaining what needs the Student Emergency Bursary area addresses or where previous funds provided have been given. 

URSU’s Oct 11 social media did suggest that, should students have questions, they could email CRO David Ennis for more information. 

Preliminary election results were announced on Nov 16. According to the results, which are publicly available on URSU’s website, Daphne Nnebiefe was elected as Director of Arts with 54.4 per cent of the 61 voters, a close race against Jensen Vu who received 45.6 per cent of the votes. 

The referendum regarding increasing the Student Emergency Fund levy fee did not pass, with only 37.9 per cent of 198 voters in favour and 62.1 per cent against. 

The results of the URSU referendum and by-election highlight a voter turnout which was significantly lower than previous years, with 200 students out of 16,215 (1.2 per cent) of eligible voters actually submitting their votes. 

To understand potential causes for the low voter-turnout, and to gather students’ general opinions about URSU, the Carillon spoke to several Journalism, News Media, and Communications (JNM&C) students currently studying at the University of Regina (UofR). 

Eric Stachowich, a fourth year Journalism student at the UofR said that although he was aware that the by-elections were happening, he did not know how or when to vote.

Stachowich says that he does not really keep up with news about the students’ union and only ever hears about them from other students. 

When discussing his right to vote in the by-elections he said, “I probably wouldn’t have [voted] anyways.”

“I know that they [students’ fee towards URSU] go into some emergency funds and other stuff like clubs and that but I am not really informed on them […] I have heard from other students [that] they think the accessibility services need to be improved,” he said.

Mason Elford, a third year student pursuing journalism at the UofR said he does not pay much attention to student politics. 

Elford did not vote in the by-elections, and he feels “apathetic towards student politics.” 

However, Elford did mention that recent events have urged him to pay more attention towards the students’ union’s performance.

“I don’t have in-depth knowledge of what [URSU] is funding and what they aren’t,” Elford admitted, going on: “I will just say what I think. When I walk around campus and see safe sex and mental health workshops set up that no doubt cost money, I can’t help but think about the state of the Fitness and Lifestyle Centre on campus….I think of a hole burning in my wallet because I had to pay $600 to park a mile away from the building I live in. While I’m walking through the yet-to-be-removed snow for the third day in a row, I see empty lots that seem to be reserved for ghosts to park in,” he said.

Elford also stated that he feels “it is disgusting how egregiously…students are being scammed.” 

Elford isn’t sure what the solution to that might be. “I don’t know how anyone can change these problems,” he said. “Voting might be the answer. So yes, I would heavily consider voting.”