Student - June 1, 2011

The PSF is alive and kicking

For next academic year, VeSte has nine seats and PSF three. This keeps the distribution of seats between the two student parties the same as this year, rector Martin Kropff has just announced.

Sanne Mierck (VeSte) and Derek Pan (PSF) congratulate each other
Exactly 2116 students cast their votes, 41 of which were blank. This turnout of 33% is more than three percent higher than last year's. VeSte got 1485 votes, giving the party 8 full seats on the council; PSF got 590, giving it three seats. The remaining seat hung in the balance and eventually went to VeSte, by 15 votes.

These were tense times for PSF, whose survival was endangered. 'The PSF is alive!' says a glowing party leader, Romy Appelman. 'Because if we had only had two seats, we would not have gone on.' She is already clear about what she wants next year. 'We have three main spearheads: sustainability, diversity and quality. But we also want to strengthen the PSF and increase membership.' Appelman is pleased with the 'steady state' of the party's popularity.

Sanne Mierck, leader of VeSte, is happy to have been elected too. 'But secretly I had even hoped for ten seats', she admits. Preferential voting meant that VeSte's ninth candidate, Tsjerk Terpstra missed the boat. 'We were already a team by now, and everybody threw themselves into it 300 percent. It's a real shame that Tsjerk wasn't elected', says Sanne. She cannot say yet what VeSte aims to achieve next year. 'First we have to really understand how it all works.'

As for the PSF, there is plenty to be done. After all, the party only has two official candidates, so the third council member still has to be found.

The student council represents the interests of all students. In practice, it proposes new policies and advises the executive board on new plans. On some issues, the council's approval is required, and it has veto rights.