The student union (SU) is running schemes called Kingston needs her and Kingston needs them to encourage female and non-binary students to take on leadership positions.
Currently the elected trustee-board are all men. The board is responsible for running the Union, including representing students on issues such as wellbeing and educational experience.
It consists of the president, student opportunities officer, welfare officer and education officer.
Student voice and insight manager, Phill, said of the spring 2023 elections: “Forty one per cent of the candidates identified as female.” Despite this they were not elected over their male counterparts, even though 61% of the student population was female.
The Student Voice team is working to encourage more students to run for elections and vote. Phill could not share specific numbers on voting demographics but said: “It is the case that women are less likely to vote than men, UK students are less likely to vote than international students, and students from some faculties are more likely to vote than others.”
Phill and his team plan to continue to monitor engagement and through schemes and events encourage more students to vote.
The 2024/5 presidential candidates were announced at the beginning of March and consist of 33 students with a mix of genders. You can see the full list on the Union’s website.
Nominations are now closed. However, you can still have your say as voting takes place between March 12 and 14. You will receive an email inviting you to vote and the results will be announced on March 14.
Amelia Jones 
Hermione Marszalek