The two frontrunners for ASUC president — CalSERVE candidate Zaynab AbdulQadir-Morris and Student Action candidate André Luu — have both put in an incredible amount of time serving this campus that deserves to be commended. But a large part of the office is about the symbolic capital the position affords to raising awareness of certain issues, and we believe that power will be best wielded by AbdulQadir-Morris.

As a current ASUC senator who ran on a platform of representing students of color, AbdulQadir-Morris has shown incredible competence when following through on promises, and we believe it will translate into her presidential platform to improve campus climate.

She has already shown a commitment to her own community by lobbying to establish the Fannie Lou Hamer Resource Center and an undergraduate scholarship fund for Black students.

We were especially concerned when Luu told our Editorial Board about his partnership with the recently formed Undergraduate Workers Union but later admitted he had not reached out to members of the union.

Luu has an extensive history with organized events such as Votechella, and it’s his third bid for an elected ASUC office. But when it comes to the bigger picture, AbdulQadir-Morris’ devotion to representing marginalized communities to campus administrators clearly shows she is a cut above. Her weakness is that she lacks a nuanced understanding of campus problems, such as the housing crisis, but we believe this can be remedied by further research and outreach.

Defend Affirmative Action Party candidate Richard Alvarado, who did not interview with our Editorial Board, has neither the institutional knowledge nor the experience to be ASUC president. While his platform to defend undocumented students is respectable, it ignores all the campus’s other problems.

Ghost, a satirical candidate running with SQUELCH!, admirably advocates transparency, but we question how we can hold Ghost accountable if we are unable to see it.

With our next president, we want someone who has shown loyalty to their communities and has their support. We want someone we can trust to listen to our voices.

Vote Zaynab AbdulQadir-Morris for president.

To read the Editorial Board’s full endorsements, click here