In Week Nine of this semester, the Australian National University Students’ Association (ANUSA) will hold its annual election. Elections for the executive members, 14 general representatives, academic officers, and college representatives will be on the agenda.  Many students might still wonder what the hell ANUSA even is, or at least what happens with that $175.50 Student Services and Amenities Fee (SSAF) they keep on paying. So here’s a (simplified) explainer of what ANUSA is.

Elections:

Anyone can throw their hat in the ring in an election by signing the ANUSA Expression of Interest and then subsequently nominating themselves or their tickets to the Returning Officer. Voting in elections is not compulsory, however, if you choose to vote on election week, you’ll have four full days to complete an optional preferential voting system (meaning you can just put your mate as number one and forget the rest). 

Candidates can officially start campaigning when nominations are called, however, you won’t see them in Kambri and the 11 other places that are restricted areas. After voting is concluded, the Executive, General Representatives, College Representatives, Academic Officers, Parents & Carers Officer and Environment Officer will be formally elected for the next year.

Factions:

Tickets with groups of candidates will be announced in the coming weeks. These groups include Labor, including the National Labor Students (Labor left) and Student Unity (Labor right), to Grassroots Independents, otherwise known as Grindies, Socialist Alternative (SAlt) and Young Liberals. Independents will run unaligned with tickets.  

Who represents you:

In every chaotic SRC meeting, there are people who represent your interests as a student. Let’s start with the seven executives. 

The President:

A full-time paid spokesperson for ANUSA who manages the entire Association. The President sits on a number of ANU boards,  where they represent the students of the University.

The Vice-President:

Works hand-in-hand with the President. Involved in academic advocacy, assisting general and college representatives and handling the Brian Kenyon Student Space (BKSS).

General Secretary:

The main person you hear at general meetings who  chairs meetings and has interpretive power over the union’s constitution and policies.

Treasurer:

Reports what ANUSA spends its student contributions on, prepares financial estimations for upcoming years. Don’t worry, there is also a registered accountant who works within the Union.

Education Officer:

Advocates for education-related matters through protests and campaigns. For example, in recent years course cuts and ‘Bring Your Own Device’ exams have been key issues for the Education Officer. They are sometimes described as the ‘Activist Officer’.

Clubs Officer:

The reason that O-Week, Market Day and Bush Week happen. This Officer develops club policies and financially supports clubs through ANUSA grants, except political clubs.

Welfare Officer:

An activist and/or services-based officer. This year, issues like poverty, housing difficulty, free food services and the buy-nothing system were voiced. This usually involves campaigns and submissions to the Federal Government.

General Representative:

There are 14 of these elected individuals, whose job is to sit in general meetings and vote. “Gen Reps” often also undertake project work throughout the year based on their interests and priorities. 

Meetings:

ANUSA Ordinary General Meetings occur once a month during a teaching period (four times a year). Annual General Meetings occur once a year. On top of this, Special General Meetings occur when 80 student signatures are called at any time to vote on particular motions. All students can vote at ANUSA General Meetings. 

Departments:

ANUSA hosts six autonomous departments, which provide a voice to various demographics of  marginalised students on campus. These include the Disabilities Student Association, Bla(c)k, Indigenous and People of Colour (BIPOC) Department, International Students’ Department, the Women’s Department, the Queer* Department and the Indigenous Department. The Environment Collective, while not an autonomous department, also falls within the category and works to advocate for the climate and environment on campus. 

Services:

Contrary to popular belief, ANUSA does more than just host a couple of protests around the ANU every semester. Legal assistance services can be accessed by students enrolled at ANU. Last year, for instance, ANUSA legal services represented students who were prosecuted in the Magistrate’s Court for unpaid parking fees on ANU campus. As well as this, student assistance services like transport vouchers, mental health grants, emergency accommodation and the BKSS free breakfast and Lunch Express are provided to students according to personal needs.  

So, having read this article and with ANUSA’s election right around the corner, we hope you are now feeling confident enough to vote for a Union that has been previously described by ANU Confessions as “more intense than the WWE when it comes to drama, infighting and fake personalities”.