Student Government election season is here and two candidates have emerged in the presidential race. Sophomores Jack Evans and Josh Kaufman both secured a minimum of 200 verified student signatures in order to officially declare their candidacy.

Each candidate has a vice presidential running mate that represents their slate — or quasi-political party. Evans is running with Katie Bozich and the pair represent “We are DePaul.” Kaufman’s running mate is Nick Darlington and they represent “DePaul for All.”

Student Government election season is here and two candidates have emerged in the presidential race. Sophomores Jack Evans and Josh Kaufman both secured a minimum of 200 verified student signatures in order to officially declare their candidacy.

Each candidate has a vice presidential running mate that represents their slate — or quasi-political party. Evans is running with Katie Bozich and the pair represent “We are DePaul.” Kaufman’s running mate is Nick Darlington and they represent “DePaul for All.”

Meet Jack Evans

Evans is from Pittsburgh and is studying marketing with minors in economics and geography. This year he has served as parliamentarian, a cabinet position in student government. The year prior he served as the senator for the business school.

Evans has outside political experience as well, having worked for the Roosevelt Institute and on Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign.

The issues Evans’ campaign is focusing on include sustainability, academic affairs and equity and diversity.

“We are one community,” Evans said. “We can’t be successful together unless we are working together.”

Evans said that as far as sustainability goes, he wants DePaul to be competitive with schools like Loyola. His slate hopes to eliminate the sale of plastic water bottles and plastic straws on campus. Additionally, Evans hopes to launch a sustainability fund in order to bankroll future endeavors.

When it comes to academic affairs, Evans said that transparency and accessibility are the two keys to success. His party wants to make information easier for students by updating or revamping the current systems.

For equity and diversity, Evans wants to launch a strategic plan that mirrors the six-year plan the university has already embarked on.

“We really need a plan in place to support all students and create a more equitable and diverse campus for everyone,” he said.

Evans appears to be the early front-runner, with an extensive background in student government along with a running mate in Bozich who also has quite a bit of experience as a senator and now a cabinet member.

Meet Josh Kaufman

Josh Kaufman is a sophomore from Ann Arbor, Michigan who is studying political science and economics.

Prior to his candidacy, Kaufman was the senator for first year students. He currently is a senator for community and government relations.

In addition to his student government service Kaufman worked for Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s office, where he did advocacy work for the disabled.

Although his slate is officially called “DePaul for All,” he has branded himself as “The Toilet Paper Party.”

Kaufman hopes to bring better quality toilet paper to the entirety of DePaul’s Loop and Lincoln Park campuses by fall 2018.

“I have already talked to over 1000 students,” he said. “The toilet paper is something we have heard multiple times and is a tangible way that we can show students we can get things done.”

Kaufman said that the toilet paper is really a microcosm for much bigger and more important issues.

“We can use student government to advocate for students’ interests and what they want,” he said.

Kaufman’s biggest issues include free speech, textbook affordability and public safety.

As far as free speech goes, Kaufman believes that “unless a speaker is inciting violence” they should be allowed to speak at DePaul, because “all ideas should be welcomed.”

“But we also have the right to peacefully protest against speakers we disagree with,” he said. Kaufman said that denying speakers because they hold unpopular viewpoints, “does more harm than good.”

Kaufman also wants to incentivize professors to move away from textbooks in favor of open-sourced, and often free, electronic options.

“I spend more money on textbooks than groceries each quarter,” he said.

Kaufman also wants to look to similar city schools as models for public safety improvements. He mentioned University of Southern California (USC) as a school that offers subsidies on late night Uber and Lyft rides.

“I think we are definitely the anti-establishment, populist message,” he said. “We are the underdogs. We know it, and we like it that way.”

Gracie Covarrubias, current SGA vice president, is urging students to vote this year and is hoping for a much higher turnout than in previous years.

“We have tried to make it as easy and convenient as possible for students,” she said.

Covarrubias said that they have a target goal of 22 percent engagement or 5,000 students. She said it is easy to vote online at votesga.depaul.edu. All students need is their Campus Connect login information.

Voting will open on April 22nd at 12:00 p.m., and the polls close April 26th at 5:00 p.m.

The next step for both candidates will be the “Meet the Candidates” event on April 19th at Munroe Hall. Students are encouraged to attend and hear from the candidates and their running mates.

Immediately following the event, The DePaulia will be hosting the first official presidential debate at 3:30 p.m. The event will be streamed live and broadcasted in partnership with Radio DePaul. However, students are encouraged to attend the debates in person.