Student council: there is a choice again

Wageningen students get to vote again this year for their own student council. Last year the only party was VeSte and there were precisely enough candidate for the 12 seats, so there was no need for elections. This year there is more choice: besides 10 VeSte candidates, there are six independent candidates. Elections will decide who gets to sit on the council. Conspicuous by its absence is the green party that was proposed last month by the Wageningen Environmental Platform (WEP). Chair Matthijs Kolpa found to his disappointment that he could not galvanize enough candidates into action. ‘I put a lot of energy into it but in the end there were only two serious candidates. That is just not enough. We decided that it was too risky in that situation to announce a new party with a great fanfare and then just hope it works out.’ But the plan has not been shelved for ever. The two students who were willing to stand, Wajun Zhao and Yang Jiang, are now standing as independent candidates. Kolpa: ‘If they are elected, they will really speak up for sustainability in the council. There is a chance that they will take up the initiative for a green party again. It is not over yet.’ After a selection round, VeSte has 10 candidates. Just like the independent candidates, they will be campaigning in the coming weeks to publicize their vision and ideas. The elections will be held from 13 to 22 May.