Oxford seemed to be a surprisingly democratic place when I first got here. The important figures in every student sports club, society, and organisation are peer-elected, and these elections are made meaningful by the large sums of money and responsibility they manage. Right now, hordes of freshers across the University are trying to convince their college sports team that they’re actually responsible—and that whatever you think you saw at that last social definitely did not happen.

 

 

JCR executive committee hopefuls face a greater challenge than most: mass appeal. They need to branch beyond the safety net of interest-based circles and persuade a broad cross-section of students that they’re up to the task of leadership. I met with the three candidates for the New College JCR Presidency (Harry Aldridge, Kaveer Ali, and Chili Cheung) to uncover what, apart from the palatial suite in Old Buildings, attracts people to the position and student politics more generally.

 

 

Whichever of the three candidates wins the election this week will be the third successive PPEist to be President of New College’s Junior Common Room. For some, that’s a depressing state of affairs — is everyone else that disillusioned with student politics? I asked our three hopefuls: why do they think PPEists are disproportionately represented on JCR executive committees? To some degree, it is the weight of expectation. Chili and Kaveer both agreed that knowing how heavily PPEists have been involved in the JCR prompted them to consider standing. Beyond that, there is the obvious selection effect: PPE attracts the sort of people who enjoy participating in politics.

 

 

So, what made each of them decide to stand? Harry attended his first JCR meeting at the end of Freshers’ Week and quickly caught the bug. He became a regular face, and was very proud to tell me that he was the only candidate who has served on the JCR committee. However, neither of his opponents let Harry’s wealth of experience perturb them. On standing, Chili said: ‘Why not? I could do a good job at it… I can see myself in the role. It seems like something worth dedicating your time to.’ Kaveer felt similarly: ‘It would be a waste of my faculties not to run. I think I can represent the JCR with confidence.’ He agreed with Chili that you have to believe you’re capable for a campaign to be worthwhile.

 

 

They’re all uber-confident PPEists, but the similarities seemed to stop there. Chili runs the Hong Kong Student Association (UK), a UK-wide organisation representing the interests of students from Hong Kong —  “Tag the Instagram if you can.” Within Oxford, Chili has been involved in Women in Government, Oxford University Filmmaking Foundation, and the Oxford Student Film Journal; both film and government appeal to her as career paths. Kaveer, the keenest sportsman of the three, played for Oxford University Basketball Club this year, and, by the end of Trinity, will also have represented New College in rowing, tennis, football, cricket and croquet. Harry has spent the year on the Events Team at Oxford Media Society, served as Class Officer at the Labour Club, and edits the Opinion Section of The Oxford Student. He was also recently elected President of The 93% Club. Had they not been allowed to stand for President, Kaveer said he’d go for Charities Officer, Chili for Food and Bar, and Harry for Outreach.

 

 

There’s something beautiful about JCR elections. You know the candidates and they know you. They’re neighbours, teammates,  and tutorial partners. You see them in the bar and Hall. You’re unlikely to receive an Instagram DM begging you to vote, distastefully produced for mass consumption. No one’s going to harass you at a polling station (everything’s online anyway) and, best of all, the election means something. Kaveer, Harry, and Chili all spoke with conviction  about their ability to do the job well—an important quality in a candidate when you consider that one of them will soon be responsible for negotiating rent on behalf of hundreds of undergraduates. JCRs are, as Harry rightly identified, the first point of contact for many incoming freshers, so I’m glad that we have so many enthusiastic student politicians. Someone has to attend committee meetings, and I’d rather it were not me.∎

 

Words and photo by Nathan Osafo Omane.