The University of Manitoba Graduate Students’ Association (UMGSA) election results are in, with Christopher Yendt, a PhD student in the faculty of education who ran unopposed, elected as president with 85 per cent of the vote.
Yendt ran on a platform of addressing financial issues that graduate students face, enhancing safety on campus, developing a strategic plan for the UMGSA and “advancing graduate student interests through meaningful partnerships.”
Candidate for vice-president academic and PhD chemistry student Hanieh Rezasoltani defeated master’s student in business administration Porus Rana with 63 per cent of votes cast.
The position of vice-president services and support went to Timilehin Oluwajuyitan, a PhD student of food science who secured 63 per cent of the vote over master’s in business administration student Shivam Sabharwal’s 37 per cent.
Master’s in business administration student Julie Xue narrowly defeated master’s of landscape architecture student Nazi Yaghoobian with 51 per cent to Yaghoobian’s 49 per cent — a margin of 9 votes.
The race for senator had four candidates vying for the two positions — PhD student in electrical and computer engineering Armin Aghajani, master’s student in education, curriculum teaching and learning Rowshan Ara Lubna, master’s student in natural resources management Uche Nwankwo and master’s in business administration student Mir Towseef.
Nwankwo secured one of the positions with 45 per cent of the vote, while Aghajani won the second with 41 per cent.
09/04/2023: The article incorrectly stated that Yendt had been re-elected as UMGSA president after having already served three terms as president. This is in fact Yendt’s first term as president of the UMGSA, replacing Silvia Sekander who had been serving as president since May 2020.
