The Camosun College Student Society (CCSS) held its fall student board elections from October 20 to 22, with 595 students casting ballots and several new representatives set to join the student society’s board.
Approximately eight percent of eligible students voted in the election. This is a slight decrease from the 602 students who voted in fall 2025 and a larger decrease from the 751 students who participated in the spring 2026 election.
Daniella Quesada was voted in as external executive, with 285 votes. Silvana Ramos Cabrera received 147 votes for this position, while Liam McCallum received 131.
For international director, Kendra Gutiérrez received 313 votes, while Phillip Dagson received 220. (Nataliia Merkusheva and Indy Kang were also running for this position and were eliminated during a three-round process of single transferrable voting.)
Several director-at-large candidates received majority support in yes-or-no votes. Eimy Gomez received 465 yes votes for Interurban director-at-large, while Kevin Shawn Anthony Coughlin received 413 for off-campus director-at-large.
For Lansdowne director-at-large positions, Jessie Rousseau-Hanson received 433 yes votes, Angela Chou received 398, and Angelina Obrien received 340.
275 students voted on October 20, followed by 165 on October 21 and 155 on October 22.
The results must be ratified at the next CCSS board meeting before becoming official. The newly elected representatives are expected to take office on November 1.
CCSS electoral committee member Mia Purnell, who is also the CCSS student wellness and access director, says the election proceeded relatively smoothly, with candidates making an effort to promote themselves and encourage students to participate.
“It was pretty typical. There wasn’t anything out of the ordinary,” says Purnell. “The candidates did a really good job campaigning and setting up posters and getting their voices out there.”
Purnell says the fall election went more smoothly than the previous election, which involved difficulties surrounding candidate conduct and uncertainty about existing election rules.
“The last one we had a couple bumps with our candidates having issues,” says Purnell.
The CCSS electoral committee is now considering changes to its policies and bylaws to provide clearer expectations for candidates participating in future elections. The committee hopes to address these concerns within the next year. One proposed improvement is an informational pamphlet outlining election bylaws, campaign expectations, and appropriate conduct toward other candidates. Purnell says the goal is to ensure candidates understand the rules before beginning their campaigns, rather than encountering confusion during the election.
“The previous years we had some complications with uncertainty on what is going against our bylaws and what isn’t, because we don’t have a whole lot of clarity,” she says.
The CCSS is also considering ways to provide additional campaign support to candidates, particularly those who have little experience with student government.
“I think another thing is majority [of the candidates] are people who would be new to the board and might be a bit unaware of how to receive more votes and how to get their voice out,” says Purnell. “They might be just a little bit more uncomfortable or shy.”
During the election, the CCSS offered candidates assistance with creating posters and answering questions about the election process. However, Purnell says campaigning through posters alone may not be enough to encourage greater student participation.
“Posters only do so much, and I find that’s what the candidates usually do instead of, like, going out and chatting with people,” says Purnell. “It really depends on the candidate, but some people are a bit more outgoing than others.”
While the electoral committee considers improvements for future elections, Purnell says newly elected representatives are preparing to begin their terms. Representatives typically receive an orientation when they take office on November 1, covering their responsibilities and other information they need to understand for their positions.
Purnell says it’s too early to identify specific new initiatives from the incoming student representatives, as they are still settling into their roles.
Beyond the election results, Purnell says student elections provide an opportunity to increase awareness of the CCSS and the services it offers. She says conversations during election campaigns have revealed that some students remain unfamiliar with the student society, even after attending Camosun for several years.
“I had a bunch of people I was talking to that were in their third or fourth year, and they didn’t know about CCSS, and they didn’t know about the student council and what we do,” says Purnell.
These conversations allow CCSS representatives to explain their work while giving students an opportunity to share concerns about their college experience, says Purnell.
“We can explain it to them, kind of what we’re about and how we can help, and then in return they can raise their concerns to us,” she says.
Reaching students can be challenging because Camosun operates across multiple campuses and has a lot of turnover, says Purnell. Despite those challenges, she encourages students to participate in future elections, whether they are familiar with the student society or voting for the first time.
“I think everyone deserves a voice,” she says.