In the 2019 UMSU Election, which saw the highest number of voters in UMSU history, the Your UMSU Team won all five positions, including Jakob Sanderson as President, who won with a majority mandate to “Demand better and leave the Canadian Federation of Students.” This student wide mandate follows a decisive board vote in which UMSU’s highest governing body voted 31-2 to take all required steps to decertify from the federation.

In the last twelve years, students have paid the federation $4 million and in that time have yet to have a binding vote on continued membership. It has become more apparent than ever that students are demanding a choice in how their money is spent, and UMSU now has a mandate to live up to its election commitment to give all students a vote on continued membership in the 2019/20 academic year.

We have officially launched our website, demandbetter.ca, where you can suggest your ideas for what you like UMSU to do with $4 million dollars, including better advocacy, campaigns and services. We look forward to engaging you with our ideas for how to put this money to use, and hearing your suggestions as we work towards getting students the best value for your money and making your voice heard at all levels of government.

We will be gathering signatures for the remainder of the 2019 winter term for our petition demanding a referendum on membership next year. If you would like to sign, or get involved in the campaign, please come by our UMSU office at 122 Helen Glass.

Sincerely,

The UMSU Executive Team