Lead the way
What are the Student Leadership Elections?
The Student Leadership Elections (previously known as the Exec Elections) are an annual democratic process which allows you to elect a team of Executive Officers who you feel will best represent the opinions of the wider student body here at Loughborough University. The elected Executive Officers will become paid employees of LSU who serve as the voice of the students, and will work to ensure that students' opinions are represented and their suggestions are considered whenever decisions are made.
If you are looking to make a positive impact on the lives of students at Loughborough, consider running to be an LSU Executive Officer!
How does the election affect me?
The Student Leadership Elections have an impact on every student represented by LSU, that's why we give you the power to elect a team of individuals who will best represent your needs.
The Executive Officers will be your voice and represent you in all matters relating to your academic experience, equity, diversity, inclusion, sport, and the democracy of the Students' Union. They keep Loughborough Students' Union on track to fulfil what is promised, and help us in delivering an unrivalled student experience.
Who can run in the Elections?
Whether you're a first year or final year, all current students are eligible to run for an Executive position!
We value the positive impact that difference can have and are committed to having an elected student body that is made up of diverse skills, experiences, and abilities. We are encouraging nominations from students who are currently under-represented within our governance structures including, but not limited to, members of the BAME (Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic), International, Disabled, LGBTQ+ and Doctoral Researcher communities.
If you are looking for an exciting opportunity to kickstart your career with a paid placement year/graduate role, then look no further. Being an Executive Officer is an incredible opportunity to be an active voice for the students, with opportunities to develop plans and see them through to execution. It will equip you with a variety of transferable skills such as organisation, strategic development, leadership, and communication, which will be invaluable as you move forward in your professional life.
What is an Executive Officer?
Our Executive Officers are paid employees of LSU who are responsible for representing the students of Loughborough. They make sure that your voice is heard by senior members of staff at the Union and the University, and work to empower all students.
There are five full-time Executive Officer positions available:
- President
- Democracy & Communities Executive Officer
- Academic Experience Executive Officer
- Equity, Diversity & Inclusivity Executive Officer
- Sport Executive Officer
President
The President of Loughborough Students' Union is a position which allows you to affect drastic and important changes at LSU and Loughborough University. The President is also responsible for leading the Executive Officers and managing the Student Community Leads, and works closely with the Union Director and Senior Management Team.
Current and past LSU Presidents:
- Rachael Alvey - 2024/25
- Molly Page - 2023/24
- Harry Hughes-Slattery - 2022/23
- Freya Mason - 2021/22
- Matt Youngs - 2020/21
- Salomé Doré - 2019/20
- Rahul Mathasing - 2018/19
Democracy & Communities
Our Democracy & Communities Executive Officer is responsible for promoting democracy and encouraging accountability within the Union. They also represent LSU on a number of boards and committees, and supports in the delivery of our disciplinary policy.
Current and past LSU Democracy & Communities Executive Officers:
- James Peat - 2024/25
- Georgia Whelan - 2023/24
- Danny Smith - 2022/23
- Charlotte Style - 2021/22 (as Vice President)
- Fejiro Aman - 2020/21 (as Vice President)
- Darcey Dunne - 2019/20 (as Vice President)
- Olly Norman - 2018/19 (as Vice President of Affairs)
Academic Experience
The Academic Experience Executive Officer is responsible for ensuring that all students represented by Loughborough Students' Union have their academic needs met. This includes maintaining a relationship with key University stakeholders, and supporting the strategic direction and development of the Academic Representation and Peer Support schemes.
Current and past LSU Academic Experience Executive Officers:
- James Simpson - 2024/25
- Lot Burgstra - 2023/24
- Alice Robinson - 2022/23
- Ana-Maria Bilciu - 2020/21 (as Education Executive Officer)
- Ana-Maria Bilciu - 2019/20 (as Education Executive Officer)
- Hannah Barton - 2018/19 (as Education Executive Officer)
Equity, Diversity & Inclusion
The Equity, Diversity & Inclusion Executive Officer is the main student representative for all things welfare, wellbeing, equity, diversity and inclusion. They are the chair of the senior Welfare & Diversity committee, and support and empower all volunteers from all strands of involvement within the Welfare & Diversity community.
They work collaboratively with the senior committee, the Union, and the University to represent student voices on EDI matters, in forums, working groups, and other committees.
Current and past LSU Equity, Diversity & Inclusion Executive Officers:
- Atlas Alberich - 2024/25
- Rachel Wan - 2023/24
- Anouska Johnson - 2022/23 (as Welfare & Diversity Executive Officer)
- Alex Marlowe - 2021/22 (as Welfare & Diversity Executive Officer)
- Alex Marlowe - 2020/21 (as Welfare & Diversity Executive Officer)
- Matt Youngs - 2019/20 (as Welfare & Diversity Executive Officer)
- Salomé Doré - 2018/19 (as Welfare & Diversity Executive Officer)
Sport
LSU's Sport Executive Officer also holds the title of President of the Athletic Union, with overall responsibility for the section. They support and represent the best interests of all students at Loughborough in regard to sports and Universities & Colleges Sport (BUCS). They also chair the Sport Senate and ensure students' comments are heard.
Current and past LSU Sport Executive Officers:
- Frankie Suckling - 2024/25
- Lizzie Adamson - 2023/24
- Ben Clubb - 2022/23
- Rachel Caverhill - 2021/22
- James Greer - 2020/21
- Lauren Durkan - 2019/20
- Oren Flynn - 2018/19
Re-Open Nominations (RON)
If you're unhappy and don't believe that any of the candidates are suitable for the position being contested, you have the option as an individual to vote to Re-Open Nominations (RON). If RON is elected, nominations for the position will be reopened so that more candidates can be sourced for the election.
How do I nominate myself?
Here at LSU, we welcome nominations from all Loughborough University students, so if you are looking to run for an Executive Officer role then read on!
- Submit your nomination online or in person to the Acting Returning
Officer before the deadline.
Your nomination must include: - Your manifesto, explaining in no more than 400 words why you are running and how you want to make positive changes to the Loughborough community.
- The names and student numbers of your Proposer and Seconder - two students who will back your campaign (but cannot be candidates themselves).
- A design for a T-shirt which supports and promotes your election campaign.
- A design for a poster which promotes your campaign, and must include the election dates and information on how to vote.
- Before you can be confirmed as a candidate, the Acting Returning Officer will check your
eligibility to stand.
These checks will include, but aren't limited to: - Your student status
- Any outstanding Union or University disciplinary sanctions
- The student status of your Proposer and Seconder
- Successful candidates will be required to attend an election briefing meeting following the approval of their nomination.
This is the important bit!
We're committed to ensuring that our elections are fair and accessible to everyone — that's why we ask that all candidates familiarise themselves with the rules! If you break these rules, you may face a campaigning ban or in extreme circumstances, you may be removed as a candidate.
Here are some of the key things to be aware of:
- No pre-campaigning — Before your candidacy has been formally approved and announced, you cannot promote the fact that you are running in the Student Leadership Elections. You can invite people to be on your campaign team, but you cannot ask for people to vote for you.
- No themes — You cannot run a campaign that copies or takes direct influence from any existing intellectual properties. Try to focus on developing a unique brand for your campaign.
- Be considerate to others — Whether you're talking to people online or in-person, be mindful of how your message will be received.
The LSU Student Leadership Elections are our annual student leader elections and an opportunity for students to choose their full-time Executive Officer Team for the upcoming year. These students, once elected, work for a whole academic year to represent everyone studying on a Loughborough University course.
For the Student Leadership Elections, all current students (inclusive of Doctoral Researchers) are eligible to stand for one of our full-time paid positions. Current Executive Officers are also able to run for a second term either in their current position or another if they wish to.
We value the positive impact that difference can have and are committed to having an elected student body that is made up of diverse skills, experiences, and abilities. We are encouraging nominations from as broad a range of students as possible and from those who are currently under-represented within our governance structures including, but not limited to, members of the BAME (Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic), International, Disabled, LGBTQ+ and Doctoral Researcher communities.
If you are a final year student, you will commence this role straight after completing your studies. If you are a non-final year student, then you would be required to take a break from your studies to take up the role and therefore you must be a registered student next year in order to nominate yourself. If you a Postgraduate Taught student, you would usually also need to take a break from your studies as the role begins full-time in July. Depending on your circumstances and the requirements of the role, it may be possible to accommodate concluding your studies alongside beginning your role, however this would need to be agreed by your School, the University and LSU (as well as being in line with any Visa restrictions, if applicable).
If you are hoping to be an Executive Officer next year, either as a placement year, alongside finishing your degree, or a leave of absence from your studies, we recommend that you speak with your School as soon as possible to discuss this. If you are a Doctoral Researcher, you may be permitted to take a sabbatical from your research, and you should discuss this with your supervisors in the first instance.
If you think your friend would make a great student leader, we'd love to know!
Whether they've never considered running in the Student Leadership Elections, or just need some gentle encouragement to run, we want to hear from you. We'll email your friend letting them know they've been recommended, encourage them to consider running and provide all of the essential information about the role and election process.
No, each individual can only run for a single Executive Officer position in an elections cycle.
As with most elections, to be elected, you'll have to get the highest number of votes!
All Loughborough Students' Union members will be able to submit their vote electronically at lsu.co.uk/elections once voting opens. You will have the opportunity to actively campaign in-person and digitally to gain student support.
If you are unable to submit a nomination for any reason, please contact elections@lsu.co.uk.
Pre-campaigning is when a candidate tries to earn people's votes before their candidacy has been officially announced with the Candidate Reveal.
Some examples of pre-campaigning are:
- Announcing in any capacity that you will be running in the Student Leadership Elections
- Encouraging people to vote for you
- Anything that may promote or support your upcoming campaign
There's plenty you can do to start planning your campaign without crossing the line of pre-campaigning:
- Preparing campaign materials (including social media pages, posters, videos and digital assets)
- Seeking help from people who you would like to be on your campaign team
- Finding out what issues are affecting students and consider how these issues can be addressed
International students with a Tier 4 visa are permitted to run in the elections and take a position as an Executive Officer at Loughborough Students' Union.
- Loughborough University can continue to sponsor your visa while you undertake an Executive Officer role.
- If you have enough time remaining on your current visa, you do not need to make a special visa application for your time as an Executive Officer.
- The University will make a report to the UK Visas and Immigration department of the Home Office, informing them of the change of your circumstances. However, it is likely that you will eventually have to extend your visa. If you are successfully elected, applications to change your circumstances can be made by emailing Student Services.
Yes, candidates will be given a budget of £50.
Student groups are not permitted to endorse individual candidates, but are encouraged to promote the Elections as a whole.
All students at Loughborough University are eligible to vote in the Student Leadership Elections!
Once voting opens, you can vote by logging into your account on the LSU website and heading to the Elections.
Voting is conducted using a Single Transferable Vote system. Watch the video below to find out how it works!
With the Single Transferable Voting system, you can rank the candidates in order of preference.
In the first instance please email elections@lsu.co.uk.
The Acting Returning Officer will receive your complaint and take the most appropriate action.
Where there is a potential breach of the election rules, the candidate in question will be notified of the breach and the investigation taking place. The investigation will be completed within 24 hours of receiving the initial complaint and, where necessary, a sanction will be imposed on the candidate.
Intimidation, abuse, discrimination, or attempted voter bribery will not be tolerated by the Union. Complaints of this nature will be referred to a complaint panel before making recommendation to the Returning Officer to remove a candidate from the election if the complaint is upheld.
During the campaign period the elections inbox in monitored between:
- 08:00 and 21:00 Monday – Friday
- 10:00 and 14:00 Saturday - Sunday
EDI stands for Equity, Diversity & Inclusion and is a key part of our mission and strategy and Loughborough Student's Union. We share Loughborough University's commitment to prioritising activities that identify and remove systemic inequities, associated with protected characteristics and marginalised groups, as well as progressing equity and inclusion.
We value the positive impact that difference can have and are committed to having an elected student body that is made up of diverse skills, experiences, and abilities. We are encouraging nominations from students who are currently under-represented within our governance structures including, but not limited to, members of the BAME (Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic), International, Disabled, LGBTQ+ and Doctoral Researcher communities.
It is important to us that all students (inclusive of researchers) feel they have had equal opportunity to nominate themselves if they wish to, to be informed of the candidates running, to read their manifestos, and to cast their vote. Whilst we have an Executive Officer role dedicated to EDI and driving our strategy forward in this area, all successfully elected Executive Officers will be expected to uphold our EDI principles and policies, and we expect to see an appreciation of this from candidates and campaign teams during the elections period.
If you have any questions or concerns relating to EDI, please contact Gabbie Dempsey (Head of Student Representation and EDI).
Loughborough Students' Union is well on our way on our journey towards becoming an anti-racist organisation, and our current and incoming Executive Officer teams are key to this. To drive forward our work in this important area, all members of the Elections Working Group and a wider team of staff have undertaken EDI and Anti-racist training. You can find the University's approach to Race Equity here and the definition of racism that we are guided by here.
There is no place for racism in our elections and we encourage you to report to us in the first instance via elections@lsu.co.uk any concerns or complaints you have regarding racist behaviour online or on campus, either that you have experienced yourself or that you have witnessed. If you don't feel able to raise your concern to us directly, you can also report to the University via their incident reporting tool.
Contacts
Sue Lucas
Acting Returning Officer
suelucas@lsu.co.uk
Contact for: Election rules
Nicky Conway
Director of Student Engagement
nicolaconway@lsu.co.uk
Contact for: Running a campaign
Gabbie Dempsey
EDI Advisor
gabbiedempsey@lsu.co.uk
Contact for: Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Advice
Kit Messinger
Candidate Welfare Support
catherinemessinger@lsu.co.uk
Contact for: Candidate Welfare Support