Middle Eastern Muslim Sikh and South Asian coalition

UC Berkeley sophomore Deena Ali, endorsed by the Middle Eastern Muslim Sikh and South Asian Coalition, or MEMSSA, is running independently for ASUC Senate.

UC Berkeley junior transfer student Giancarlo Fernandez was unanimously voted into office by the ASUC Senate as the executive vice president of the ASUC in a meeting Sept. 15.

UC Berkeley sophomore Mehnaz Grewal, endorsed by the Middle Eastern Muslim Sikh and South Asian Coalition, or MEMSSA, is running independently for ASUC Senate on a platform that includes advocating for the MEMSSA community and providing COVID-19 relief to students.

As a part of United Against Hate Week, the Offices of ASUC Senator Imran Khan and representatives of the UC Berkeley Middle Eastern Muslim Sikh and South Asian, or MEMSSA, community organized a whiteboard social media campaign on Sproul Plaza on Wednesday.

While ASUC elections season has been historically dominated by the two largest parties, CalSERVE and Student Action, this year’s candidate makeup has been slightly different.

Two campus sophomores, John Bosshard and Alaa Aissi, recently announced their intent to run as independent ASUC Senate candidates in the spring 2016 elections.

As the 2015-16 ASUC elections draw near, independent and third-party candidates gear up for what have historically been daunting odds against the candidates of major campus parties.

ASUC senate candidate Sumayyah Din’s hashtag “dintifada” sparked controversy on social media this week because of its play on the word “intifada.”