LONDON: Moosa Harraj has been elected President of the Oxford Union for Michaelmas 2025, securing 833 first-preference votes and defeating runner-up Chris Collins, who garnered 663 votes. Harraj, currently serving as the Union’s Librarian and pursuing an MPhil in Economics at Balliol College, ran under the #Bridge slate, which dominated the elections by securing all four officer positions.
The full officer election results saw Katherine Yang elected as Librarian with 826 votes, defeating Nathanael Kennedy-Leroi, who received 572 votes. Raza Nazar was elected Treasurer with 878 votes, defeating Oliver “JL” Jones-Lyons’ 533 votes. Jennifer Yang won the Secretary position with 855 votes, surpassing Prajwal Pandey, who received 548 votes. Additionally, Brayden Lee, Matthew Chiu, Samy Medjoub, Akshay Pendyala, Chloe Pomfret, and Víctor Marroquín-Merino were elected as Standing Committee members. The results for the Secretary’s Committee will be announced on 9 March.
Harraj’s campaign focused on his extensive experience as an elected officer and his understanding of the Union’s challenges, including its financial, organizational, and reputational issues. Collins, a finalist reading Classics at Corpus Christi College, criticized “petty student politics” and emphasized a vision focused on delivering impactful events and meaningful debates.
The election, held on 7 March, witnessed a record turnout of 1,730 votes, significantly surpassing previous elections. In comparison, 1,187 votes were cast in Trinity 2024, and 1,268 in Michaelmas 2024. The Oxford Union used a single transferable voting (STV) system, with 42 candidates aligned with #Bridge and 33 with the #Rebuild slate.
Following the results, Collins expressed gratitude to his supporters and called for unity within the Union. “I’m incredibly grateful to everyone who supported us in what has been the largest election of recent times,” he told The Oxford Student. “I love the Union, and I hope that we will be able to move beyond the struggles of the past few months. I wish Moosa all the best for the future.”
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With the #Bridge slate securing full control of the Union, all eyes are now on Harraj’s leadership as he prepares to guide the prestigious institution in the upcoming year.
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