It was announced this morning that Sean Rillo Raczka, ULU’s President-elect, will not be taking office in September. Roar! has contacted Rillo for a response, but his reasons so far have remained curiously quiet. Further, London Student’s new editor Jen Izaakson is yet to comment on the debacle.
Much like the elections of Yemen and Zimbabwe, Sean ran uncontested for the position last year. Only a small portion of the London student populace of 120,000 voted and Raczka won with 737 votes.
The former chair of the Birkbeck student union ran for the position because he wanted to be a strong political leader for ULU. He also saw as vital the need to combat the government’s attack on young people entering higher education. A loud student union in London is necessary to oppose the trebling of tuition fees in September and the damaging cuts to our universities.
With such a promising past as a political representative for London students, organising marches, leading protests, it won’t be surprising if Raczka’s got something else lined up.
A by-election will take place early in the next academic year to determine who will lead ULU in what should be an historic year for student politics.
You can follow Ben Jackson on Twitter at @bjacksonuk
