Senate Election Voting Guide

Today, undergraduates can vote for president, vice president and senators in the ASUNM elections. Read up on the candidates and their platforms before heading to the polls.

Impact

Presidential Candidate: Ashkii Hatathlie
junior, communication and journalism

ASUNM senator, Steering and Rules Committee
Resident adviser, Coronado Hall
Alpha Tau Omega fraternity member
Undergraduate fellow, Office of Equity and Inclusion
Director of Residence Life and Student
Housing Hiring Committee

Vice Presidential Candidate: Bridget Chavez
sophomore, journalism and mass communication and political science

ASUNM senator, Outreach and
Appointments chair
Former ASUNM Senate clerk
Pi Beta Phi sorority member
Student Publications Board member
Honors Curriculum Task Force

Students for Students

Presidential Candidate: Caroline Muraida
junior, economics and biology

ASUNM senator, Finance Committee
Former ASUNM president pro tempore
Interim Provost Search Committee member
Honors College Proposal Committee
League of United Latin American
Citizens member

Vice Presidential Candidate: Sunny Liu
senior, accounting

ASUNM senator, president pro tempore
Former Senate Finance Committee chair
President Strategic Advisory Team member
Student Publications Board member
Net Impact vice president

Daily Lobo: If elected, on what ideals would you model your presidency?

Presidential candidate Caroline Muraida: Communication is an area that needs improvement. There needs to be a consistent form of communication between the president and the student body — letting them know what we do, and why we do it. I am looking forward to working through the media to achieve this. Making sure that students serve on … and are heard on the University boards that make major decisions about the direction in which this University is going is of vital importance.

Presidential candidate Ashkii Hatathlie: I really want to work toward having bi-monthly round tables with agencies, to not only increase opportunities and attendance at events, but also increase volunteers within those agencies as well. When agencies start out on the right track, (that) is when ASUNM will spike the interest of individuals outside of the agencies themselves. We need to let people know what ASUNM really does and that students have the opportunity to voice their concerns to the senate.

Daily Lobo: How do you view the role of president/vice president?

Muraida: As the president of ASUNM, it is my job to carry out the executive duties and to oversee the three separate branches, but my role goes beyond that. It is about connecting the UNM community. For instance, one of the initiatives I want to meet with student body leaders all across the state and across the nation to get an idea of what they are doing and what ideas are being implemented at schools other than UNM.

Hatathlie: I would not be an effective president if I did not have my own goals, aside from the goals of my slate. I am really looking forward to the ASUNM relationship with the incoming president. Asking him, what was it like when you were an undergrad here, when you received your degrees from here? What was the climate like? What did you like and not like? Working to culminate all these ideas and create something new.

Vice presidential candidate Sunny Liu: I have a lot of ideas on how to divide up the work among senators. Currently, I think there are two main problems: one, the learning curve, once you get elected as a senator, and two, putting senators where they work best. Since elections and the turnover of senators is so rapid, it is really important that senators start jumping into what they promised their constituents when they ran for the position — this can be accomplished through training, and showing senators what their role is. I would like to take this a step further and place more accountability there.

Vice presidential candidate Bridget Chavez: The vice president is in charge of the overseeing the senate and we need to take an active role as a senate. I do know that resolutions and bills do go a long way, but with that … it does not just stop there. We need to assign senators to the agencies they will be representing and that way they can start that communication early because a lot of the time senators may not know what their agency is expecting of them. If we start the communication early, by the time school begins those committees and agencies are already set up. It is about starting the process early enough so that everyone on ASUNM, both the executive and the legislative side, are on the same page.

Daily Lobo: Why did you decided to run for president/vice president?

Muraida: Someone once told me you should never run to be someone, but run to do something. When I joined Senate, I never imagined that I would be running for president in spring of 2012 but the opportunity presented it, and to form this inspiring team of senatorial candidates. I am giving this experience this shot because I believe in what we are doing — it is an opportunity to organize the community around a common goal of being a better university.

Hatathlie: It was a combination of as senator … I had all of these really big ideas, and I did not know how to go about implementing them as a senator, I felt that in order for me to effectively accomplish what I want to accomplish … I could effectively do that as president of UNM. Hitting the ground running next fall is something we have to do and we are prepared to because we are able to come from different areas of representation.

Liu: We have been speaking with students over the course of this campaign about what they would like to see changed. I want to show students that ASUNM is their voice. ASUNM is intended to collaborate with students. We are not just 20 senators and an executive branch.

Chavez: I started at the bottom of the food chain as far as ASUNM is concerned. I started with (Emerging Lobo Leaders), then the next semester I was Senate clerk so I worked under Joe Colbert when he was vice president. I know what is expected out of the office, and how the office works and how it should run. I’ve been a senator, but I have also been even below a senator — so I know both sides. I think having knowledge of all the levels of ASUNM really contributes to why I want to do this.

ASUNM Elections
SUB, Johnson Center, Dane Smith Hall, SRC Commons, Zimmerman Library
9 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Mitchell Hall, Centennial and Mesa Vista Hall
9 a.m. to 5 p.m.