The candidates for the SU elections have been uploading their campaign videos, in a final push for votes before Friday’s election results announcement. Impact now takes a look at the campaign videos for some of the candidates who we have not yet spoken to on the campaign trail.
University Park Campus was looking relatively sparse this morning, as campaigns were promoted in other student-populated areas, such as the Derby Campus and Queen’s Medical Centre.
The candidates have instead turned to social media in order to get their messages out. With likes and shares providing free publicity, the campaign videos allow for each candidate’s message to be spread far beyond the realms possible from personal appearances and banners. Since its release on Friday, Martin Nguyen’s Activities campaign video has been viewed more the 11,500 times on Facebook.
Today saw the release of Yolanda King’s campaign video, promoting her campaign for Postgraduate Officer. Using her namesake, Dr Martin Luther King’s famous pastiche ‘I have a dream’, Yolanda sets out her vision for how she will complete the role.
‘I have a dream’, she tells the viewer, ‘that societies and sports clubs will work to integrate and actively seek postgraduate membership.’ She also promotes her virtual welcome fair policy, which will ‘enable you to experience what our welcome fair has to offer whenever, and wherever you are.’
Ellie Mitchell, running for Communities Officer, used the opportunity to make her own ‘Wolf of Wall Street’ tribute trailer. This links to her campaign theme ‘Get Mitch of Die Tryin’’, which has also seen dollar bills with her face on distributed across campus.
Featuring a cameo from Matthew McConaughey (or at least a guy in a mask), Mitchell’s video features her policies flashing across the screen, such as her ‘Pay-as-you-go’ student bus pass and restricting how far in advance Ocean and Crisis tickets can be sold.
Naomi Adele Batley today released her second campaign video, after her first showed support from around the world. Her latest offering is a novel take on ‘Hello’ by Adele, with the words changed to ‘Hello, it’s Naomi. I’ve been wondering if after all these years you’d vote for me.’ The altered lyrics go on to explain that her ‘manifesto aims to help you through support and training.’
Naomi’s competitor for Equal Oppotunties and Welfare Officer, Laura Bealin-Kelly, yesterday released her campaign video where she is seen at vary places on campus, explaining how her manifesto is ‘split into three main points; support, access and awareness’. She uses graphics to demonstrate how a ‘support tab’ would look on the SU website, and enacts her pledge to put subtitles on videos, to make them accessible to the hard of hearing.
Many of the candidates who Impact have already caught up with on the campaign trail have also released election videos.
To see for the campaign videos for yourself, head to the candidates’ campaign pages.
Ben Lewis
Images: Reuben Fakoya-Brooks for Impact Images
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