Forge Press reached out to the SU President by-election candidates. Our reporters spoke to all five candidates, asking them why they’re running for the role, their policy goals and about their relationship with the Students’ Union.
Eli Thompson (He/They)
Eli Thompson was unable to attend in-person interviews; however, they sent us answers to Forge Press’ questions.
Eli Thompson told Forge: “I’ve seen the impact the SU can have with compassionate leadership and community building.” Speaking on why they want to run for SU President, they said: “I want to increase that impact, make it more consistent, and more widespread. I believe I have what it takes to do so.”
Their policies focus on accountability, accessibility, inclusivity and “fighting for our future”.
Thompson explained: “My main policies include developing an SU-owned sustainable careers hub for underrepresented students and international career support, improving access to support for those on placements and year abroads, and lobbying the government to change the new student visa requirement policies.”
When asked how they plan to adjust plans for the shorter term, Thompson told us: “I will prioritise those that will be faster to deliver such as strengthening communication, small but meaningful improvements to student services, and improving accessibility. All while building the groundwork for more long term projects. I will support the Full-Time Officers by progressing what is already being worked on and building from that.”
Their interest in the role stemmed from personal experiences at university. They shared: “As a queer disabled student, I have faced many barriers throughout all levels
of my education. Due to this I am incredibly aware of how many barriers there are to higher education and need to do something about it.” Thompson identified the wider political context impacting students, “all aspects of our education are under attack from new visa policies for international students to cuts and simplification of courses we study. The student voices needs to be heard and I’m interested in facilitating that.”
Finally, when asked about their favourite part of the SU, Thompson told us: “the community it encourages. From sustainable initiatives to charity work. Everything can only happen because students are passionate about their community.”
“That being said – I will never turn down Bar One, my favourite space in the SU”.
Kenneth (He/Him)
In an interview with Forge Press, SU President candidate Kenneth spoke about running for the role and how he would make an impact in a shorter time frame than usual.
When asked why he wanted to run for SU President, he said: “Well, first off, it’s because of my previous experience in another uni, I was on the committee of various clubs and societies, and it feels like I can bring change with my teamworking experience.”
He continued: “Second of all, it just feels like the uni is falling apart and we need to do something to change it. It is time for me to step up and do something about it.”
Kenneth told Forge he doesn’t have any specific policies because “the agenda really depends on what fellow students want.”
“If people are concerned about campus safety, or issues like financial funding or teaching qualities, I’m happy to work on it with you guys, with everyone.”
This year, the SU president will serve in their role from December to June, rather than for a full year. When asked about this, Kenneth said that he would ensure he is available to everyone and would hold drop-in sessions to check in whilst working closely with the officer team to make his shorter term have the same impact.
When asked what his favourite part of the SU is, he said it was “the inclusiveness of the community in general, because we’ve got councillors and officers that are representing basically every single one of the students, and everyone has a say about what happens in this uni, in the short term and long term.
“It’s really fun to see how what we are doing right now can shape the future for the uni and society.”
Dylan Lewis-Creser (They/Them)
In an interview with Forge Press, candidate Dylan Lewis-Creser told us why they wanted to run for SU President: “It’s really important to have someone who has been around and knows the student experience, and the SU quite well. Someone who knows how to make that change and has experience outside of student spaces in order to hold people accountable.”
They spoke about their experience as a governor at Sheffield Teaching Hospital “making sure they’re supporting people”. They also sit on the National Executive of the Green Party of England and Wales, collectively responsible for a £10 million budget. Dylan told us: “That experience in particular will be really important for me when holding the University to account, mking sure they’re putting students at the centre of everything and also guiding the SU through tough financial times. Making sure we prioritise things that really matter to students and keeps us the number Students’ Union in the country.”
Speaking on some of their policies they’d look to implement, they said: “One thing I’ve always been very passionate about is environmental sustainability. I’d really like to see a community garden on campus, and I think obviously as this is a by-election it makes things a bit more complicated, but I think there’s a lot that students coming together can do.” Dylan spoke about collaborating with societies, like the Allotment society on this project.
Lewis-Creser told us they’d like Learning Support Plans to become available to all students on request, saying: “I’m respecting all different styles of learning and how different people work, making sure that hybrid and distance learning are still options for students.”
We asked Dylan how they’d implement some of these changes, during such a short term, in which they told us: “There’s lots of things I would have liked to do, and there is still scope to do some of it. Working with the current officer team is a priority, as it’s the officers’ priority to get things done for students who voted last spring”.
“There is a lot we can do within the SU, there are many little changes we can make like supporting the student support centre, we have the space to make a garden, I don’t think that would take a full year.”
“If I was elected as president, that would give me more legitimacy and power in those university spaces to make that argument directly to them. It’s important that the person who’s able to do that has experience and has the mandate from people to do that.”
Asked why the role of president really stood out to them, Dylan told us: “I think it’s really good to give back, I really enjoy University, I like the SU, and I want to use what I’ve learnt and done in the past to try and make that a bit better for people coming in the future.
Talking about the SU, Dylan explained: “A lot of us come to Sheffield for the Student’s Union, because it’s ranked so highly and it’s a big reason why we have such a passionate student community around here. I’ve made so many friends at the Student’s Union in doing activities and taking part in societies, and I’d like it to stay that way and that’s why I’m really passionate about doing all I can.”
Finally, we asked Dylan what their favourite part of the Student’s Union was and why: “I love Grill and Go, it’s perfect! The piri piri corn burrito is a top tier lunch for me.”
Benito Hart Prieto (He/Him)
Benito Hart Prieto was unable to attend in-person interviews; however, he sent us answers to Forge Press’ questions.
Speaking to Forge, Benito said, “This is a really important moment for the SU. Things have just been shaken up by the restructure and without a president it will be harder to focus our efforts on what matters to students.” He explained he wants to run for SU President as it’s a “great opportunity for change.”
“We’ve seen that the SU and university are looking to improve their student voice systems. I want to make sure that happens in a way that makes a lasting difference to students, and I’m in a good position to help with this.”
His policies focus on “making it easier and more worthwhile for students to get involved in shaping their education and university life.” He proposes workshops and online forums to reach students who aren’t “already in the loop”, as well as expanding low-commitment roles and training that are easy to manage alongside studies.
Hart Prieto explained: “I’ll link this work with the Careers Service, so when you put time into improving the uni, it’s recognised and opens more doors for you. All together this will foster a more vibrant student democracy, which is the engine behind all of our services.
“In a nutshell, I’m looking to make the SU more adaptive, lively and bold.”
When asked how he has adjusted his policies for the shorter term, Hart Prieto told Forge: “The core is the same: investing in student skills and student voice.” He plans to complete a few key changes quickly, as opposed to “trying to redesign everything at once.”
“That means launching a pilot version of the online forum, setting up a small number of new low-commitment roles, and starting regular updates on what students are raising and what’s being done. The aim is to demonstrate the value of this approach and to leave behind working changes that the next team can build on.
His interest in the role comes from experience being involved in student politics since his first year. “I’ve seen how much potential the SU has and I’ve thought a lot about how it could be improved for everyone. Now the moment feels right, partly due to the restructure and the empty president role.”
Finally, when asked about his favourite part of the SU, Benito told Forge: “The opportunities it gives people.” He shared, “Before Sheffield, I worked as a receptionist for a few years after dropping out of college. I worked hard and cared about that little part of the hospital, but there were few chances for development beyond my role.” He went on to explain: “In the SU, students can chair meetings, negotiate with senior staff, run campaigns and support their peers – experiences that genuinely change your confidence and direction. The skills you pick up here will stay with you well beyond university. And being able to influence not just your own time here but also the education of future students is a rare privilege.
Justin Griffiths (He/Him)
Forge Press reached out to Justin Griffiths, one of the candidates in the upcoming presidential election and asked him what made him want to run for president. He said, “I like elections. I like the jeopardy. Will I get elected, won’t I? The thrill of it.”
We then asked him what his policies are if he does get in, to which he replied: “Bring back the vegan fiesta wraps to the SU shop. I’m not even vegan, it’s just quite a nice wrap.”
He was then asked whether he had adjusted his policies for the shorter term. He said, “Yeah, I’ve made my policies very bare bones. I’ve really worn down a lot because I don’t think I’d really achieve them even if I had a full year. So like bringing back the vegan fiesta wrap, I think people should vote depending on whether they think that’s possible.”
Forge then asked him what had first interested him in the role. He said: “It’s got ‘president’ in the name, it’s the best SU in the country so that means quite a lot. Pay’s pretty good apparently, cause it’s a full-time role.”
We asked him what his favourite part of the SU was. He said: “I quite like Coffee Revolution. Pretty decent. Good location.”
Finally, he was asked whether there was anything else he would like people to know about, to which he replied: “Edmund Fitzgerald was quite an important event. 29 sailors died on November 10th 1975. The boat literally just snapped in half.”
The election will take place from 9 am on Wednesday, 26th, to 11:59 pm on Thursday, 27th November, on the SU website and app. Results will then be announced at 6 pm on Friday at Coffee Revolution.
Read their manifestos and find out more here!
