Editor’s note: A previous version of this article did not include Jennifer Murray as someone who campaigned the first day of the election season on the Plaza. 

As students passed between buildings on Monday, the familiar presence of campaign booths filled the Plaza for the first time since November: the Associated Students of Colorado State University elections have begun.

The four campaigns contesting for president and vice president are:

• Nick Bohn with running mate Tristan Syron
• Edward Kendall with running mate Kyrie Merline
• Hailey Morton with running mate Yuval Rosenthal
• Josh Silva with running mate Michael Wells

ASCSU Director of Outreach Nick Bohn and College of Liberal Arts Senator Tristan Syron want to increase transparency between students and members of ASCSU.

“ASCSU has an office, but it’s not enough to have an office and invite people in,” Bohn said. “We really have to outreach to people and make sure we’re going out there to find them. It’s ASCSU’s job to impact the University.”

Kendall, the current Speaker Pro Tempore for ASCSU, and his running mate Kyrie Merline want to provide more opportunities for students who are struggling financially.

“Our campaign is about getting back to the basics (and) making sure students have what they need to get by,” Kendall said. “We focus a lot on food insecurity, transportation, things that really might seem like, ‘No duh, why haven’t we done that already?'”

Hailey Morton and her running mate, Yuval Rosenthal, said they want to build more meaningful connections with students.

“We are passionate about building purposeful connections with students from all walks of life, creating an action-driven government that is transparent in serving the student body, and including individuals in decisions of which they have been unfairly denied influence in the past,” Morton wrote in a statement to the Collegian

Silva and Wells, both members of ASCSU’s Department of Finance, want to improve student success by increasing openness in ASCSU and provide more resources for student success.

“I think it’s pivotal for any person who becomes the next president to continue that openness and inclusiveness,” Silva said. “We want ASCSU to cultivate a culture of excellence. We want to make sure every student is excelling on an academic level as well as on a personal level.”

Isabel Brown, the current Senate Outreach chair and senator for the College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, and Jennifer Murray, a senator for the College of Liberal Arts and vice president for the Liberal Arts Deans Leadership Council, both campaigned on the Plaza the first day of the election season for the Speaker of the Senate position. 

Bayler Shubert is also running for the Speaker of the Senate.

ASCSU will hold two debates involving the president and vice president campaigns. The first debate will occur March 23 from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. on the campus’ plaza, and the second debate will be held on March 29 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. in the Lory Student Center’s theatre.

Students can vote for a campaign from April 3 to April 5 on RamWeb. Campaigns will conclude April 5 at 4 p.m.

Stay with the Collegian for profiles on each campaign and further coverage of ASCSU elections.

Collegian reporter Haley Candelario can be reached at news@collegian.com or on Twitter @H_Candelario98.