The international students are undoubtedly making an impact here at ISYY. Laura Carman, an international student and a Social Democratic Students candidate, couldn’t help but sing Survivor’s Eye of the Tiger at the election night party even before the results were in. Finally, she burst with joy when it became clear she was to be a new member of the Representative Council. Two other international students hold seats in the Representative Council besides her. The student organisations won ISYY’s representative council elections. The independents pulled ahead and the politically affiliated had to give up their previous dominance. The representative council will now be more international as well. – Pasi Huttunen, text & picture, Juho Suomalainen, translation
The independents won the elections, not only at ISYY but nationally as well. Lists associated with student organisations were especially successful as they now hold 13 seats in total in the representative council here at ISYY. The lists that aren’t affiliated with political parties now hold 21 seats in the representative council whereas the politically affiliated hold 18. In the previous elections the corresponding figures were 19 and 20, respectively. ISYY’s representative council has 39 seats.
ISYY’s new representative council will begin its term on December 4 and the seats were divided as follows, DeeKu, representing medical and dental students, hold six seats, pharmacy students’ organisation Fortis hold three seats, environmental policy and law students’ Tombolo hold one seat, Kylterit, the student organisation of economists, hold three, International Students hold one seat, Puolueettomat (Independents) hold four seats and Opiskelijan ISYY hold three seats. On the politically affiliated side, the Green list, Keskeiset, and the Social Democratic Students each hold three seats, Oikeat hold two, Perussuomalaiset hold one, and Itä-Suomen vihreä vasemmisto hold six seats. The biggest losers of these ISYY elections were Oikeat and Puolueettomat as they both lost three seats.
The most votes, 103, received Henna Räisänen of DeeKu, a student of medical sciences, whereas Paavo Kyyrönen of Opiskelijan ISYY, a student of computer science, was the second biggest vote-puller of the elections having received 88 votes. ISYY’s representative council has never been as international as the newly elected one. Isaac Adaam, as the only candidate for the International Students, now holds a seat, and so do Wagar Zafar and Laura Carman, meaning that two out of the three Social Democratic Students candidates who now hold a seat are international students.
At a national level the independents were even more dominant. Out of the 478 representative council seats, the independents hold 377, or nearly 79 percent. Left-wing won on the politically affiliated side. The green list managed to raise their support the most.