The Lent Elections nomination process may seem daunting, but it is actually pretty simple! Follow these quick steps to help you complete it.
The Lent Elections nomination process may seem daunting, but it is actually pretty easy!
Follow these quick steps to help you complete your application.
1. Start with your idea
You might be really passionate about lowering the cost of rent, or improving sustainability at the University. Are you committed to decolonising the curriculum or improving the university experience for disabled students? Whatever it is, you just need to have one idea that you feel strongly about, and you can build on from that.
Why do you want to win the role you’re running for? What’s the one thing you’d want to achieve? What will be different about Cambridge at the end of your term? Those are helpful questions to think about when you’re trying to decide on the key messages of your campaign.
Lots of people who might vote for you probably won’t read your whole manifesto, or would be more likely to pay attention to a social media post if it’s short, sharp and to the point. Voters are more likely to remember you, and ultimately to cast their ballot for you, if you have a simple and clear message that stands out and that they see over and over again. Decide on your core messages, and make sure you stick to them.
Once you have decided on your core messages you can start to develop those ideas into your manifesto – 500 words with the key changes you want to make during your time as a Sabbatical Officer.
2. An understanding of the roles avilable
Once you have worked out the changes you want to make, it’s time to think about the role that best suits these.
If you’re not sure which role your ideas would fall into the remit of, then have a look on the Elections page to see what each one entails.
If you would like further support on this, don’t hesitate to get in touch with the elections team with any questions you might have. The current Sabbatical Officers can also help you gain an understanding of what areas their role can work on and tell you a bit about their own experiences this year.
3. A great photo of yourself
A photo of yourself for a good application is adviseable, and we recommend taking a well-lit, high-quality headshot (or head and shoulders) photo of yourself to show voters that you care about this election.
As well as the nominations site, these will be useful for printed promotional material and social media, so don’t forget to find time to get the perfect photo!
4. A campaign team
You don’t win an election without campaigning, and it takes a lot of commitment, time, and energy to do so. But you don’t have to do this alone!!
The best way to increase the reach of your campaign is to ask your strongest supporters to campaign for you too, whether that’s housemates, close friends or people that really back your platform. If they also make sure they’re using their networks to recruit, you can reach a lot of people. If you can get support from someone that knows a lot of people or might carry some influence, even better.
You should also ask for people to help with other parts of your campaign. Do you have a friend that’s good at designing social media graphics? Make use of them!
If you’re nervous about asking for help, remember they’re not just doing you a favour – you’re running to make Cambridge better for lots of students, and the people helping you care about that too. You might even meet new people who want to support you with your campaign along the way!
So start asking around to see who will be willing to give you help – you’ll be surprised at how many people want to get involved!
That’s everything! Once you’ve submitted your nomination you can start to get the ball rolling with your campaign.