Year Rep Review

Don’t know who to vote for yet? LDD has got you covered!

Following three days of fierce campaigning, the Year Representative race comes to a close. Through dinners and debates, each candidate expressed why they would make the perfect Year Rep. So, as the elections draw near, the candidates answered some of our questions to summarize their pitch :

CONNECTION

As a Year Representative, you will have to engage with the entire Sciences Po community as to represent the interest of the group. How will you make sure to expand outreach?

All four candidates agree on two things : openness and availability. Indeed, Tô Minh Sơn summarized his methodology in three words : “Communication. Talk. Observe.”. Vijey Ganesh elaborated on his view by stating that “[he is] also someone who tries to talk to everyone and [he would] like to keep [his] ears open for any issue”. This view is closely shared by Suvayan Sen Gupta who states that “ [he] would try to speak to everyone possible (…) [he] will be available at all free times on campus to address people’s questions or problems”. Léonie Lhommelais suggests “communication through social media and email”. She also wishes to have “a white board in the hall with the events and the news of the campus” as a way to keep the student body informed.

Moreover, both Suvayan Sen Gupta and Vijey Ganesh evoke the idea of organising more general assemblies to close the gap between the student body and the administration. As Vijey Ganesh put it, he wishes to hold “a general assembly each month along with the administration to address key policy and administrative issues”. Tô Minh Sơn hopes to achieve the same objective “from simple conversation over coffee to formal gatherings and polls”.

IDEAS FOR CHANGE

If you are elected, what kind of change do you hope to make?

On this issue, all candidates hold their own position. “[I want to make] small differences that go a long way to enhance life on campus” stresses Vijey Ganesh. Léonie Lhommelais and Suvayan Sen Gupta agree : they wish to increasing communication between the administration and the student body. In contrast, Tô Minh Sơn hopes to simply “remain at most a representation of [the student body’s] interest” instead of having a specific program. He asks : “what change do you want?”.

What is the biggest challenge you believe you will face during your mandate as Year Representative? How do you plan on resolving this issue?

In answering this question, Tô Minh Sơn reminds us that there are “big limitations to the position of Year Representative (…) [he or her] is just a policy adviser to the administration”. He wishes to overcome these limitations by “[being] the most comprehensive and pragmatic policy adviser as possible to the administration”. He also hopes to “obtain statistical data specifically for this campus”. On the other hand, Léonie Lhommelais claims her biggest challenge to be in line with the leading clause of her program : “an improvement of communication with the administration on many matters to reach changes, whether it is concerning the Civic Learning Program, the 3A […] steady meetings with the administration, among others, will improve the situation” she states. Vijey Ganesh agrees with this view. He believes he will encounter the most difficulty “with the 3A program and [the] easy access for the students with the administration”. Finally, Suvayan Sen Gupta states “the biggest challenge that I will face is to ensure that everyone on campus is happy and doesn’t face any trouble”. He would like to attempt that “through increased communication [and] sharing of problems”.

MOTIVATION

What makes you different from other candidates ?

Tô Minh Sơn – If you take my personality apart, you might be able to find a part of me that can resonate with a certain demographic. It’s mostly because I’ve lived a relatively diverse life, and so my world-understanding is quite integrated and… kinda weird collectively, but also not weird at the same time, individually.

Vijey Ganesh – I love the people I’m surrounded by and would like to make their lives a little bit easier

Suvayan Sen Gupta – What makes me different from other candidates is that I have skill to comprehend and understand and I can easily think on my feet that helps me tackle day to day problems. I am not afraid of failure as I believe we learn our greatest lessons from it. Also my campaign isn’t about what I can achieve from the start it’s been about what we together can achieve so I believe that sets me apart from the rest. Listen to your heart and do what’s right vote for Suvayan and we can make things right.

Léonie Lhommelais – I tried to make my program as realistic as possible, with projects that have a real chance to be achieved. Constantly adding learning material on the shared Drive is one of the easiest to do, but it will already help many. A program based on the feedback that all the students I talked to have given me. What is also important is that it is not fixed: I will always be all ears for whatever needs to be addressed.

If you had one sentence to pitch your campaign, what would you say?