Two slates and a third independent candidate are facing off in the upcoming UTSU March elections.
Led respectively by presidential candidates Brent Schmidt and Shaun Shepherd, the final list of candidates reprises a familiar pattern, in which an incumbent UTSU executive and seasoned opposition member go head-to-head.
Rohail Tanoli is also running for presidential office as an independent. Both slates remain unnamed.
Schmidt is a veteran of last year’s Student Political Action Committee (SPAC) and the StudentsFirst slate. He is the communications director for Hart House’s Debating Club.
Shepherd is currently UTSU’s vice-president external and a former executive of the Black Students’ Association. His candidacy upsets the tradition of the longest-serving executive stepping up to run for head office. Had the tradition persisted, Corey Scott, a former LGBTOUT executive who has served two vice-presidential terms, would be in Shepherd’s place. Instead, Scott is seeking to return to his current position of vice-president internal and services.
Tanoli was StudentFirst’s vice-president external candidate. After 40 out of his 217 signatures were declared invalid, he was disqualified from last year’s elections. Tanoli is currently the vice-president of U of T’s South Asian Alliance.
Both slates are rounded out by new faces.
Schmidt is joined by Alexander Ripley (external), Dylan Moore (internal and services), Carmen Reilly (university affairs), and Karthy Chin (equity). Shepherd’s team consists of Abigail Cudjoe (external), Corey Scott (internal and services), Munib Sajjad (university affairs), and Noor Baig (equity).
The electoral code disallows campaigning as of The Varsity’s press time. The campaign period officially starts Monday. As a result, no candidates were permitted to comment for this story as of press time.
