Philly Holmes is to be the next Communications and Marketing Officer of Trinity College Dublin Students’ Union (TCDSU), after winning 54.0% of the vote on the second count.
Neither candidate reached the quota on the first count, which saw Holmes receive 48.6% of the votes and his opponent Hiram Harrington receive 42.2%, with 218 votes to re-open nominations which were then redistributed between the candidates. Of those, 149 were not transferred, 22 went to Harrington, and 47 went to Holmes. This put Harrington on 1017, or 46%, and Holmes on 1193, or 54%
Holmes campaigned on a platform of ideas to increase engagement to the SU, which both he and his competitor, Hiram Harrington, saw as a key issue.
Holmes expressed a desire to increase the accessibility of the SU’s communications. He stated that he will persist with the weekly email, but will not produce a separate “accessible version”; rather, he will digitally produce it in an accessible manner. He also plans to create an audio version in English and Irish.
He also wants to ensure that the SU’s social media present reflects the diversity of the SU. Instead of seeing a ‘wall of SU blue’, he wants to streamline the social pages to show the faces behind the SU, and not allow the body to become solely a page of advertisements. He wants to highlight how the SU is both the voice for the students and of the students.
On the marketing side of the role, Holmes wants to implement ‘student-first sponsorships’. He has promised an evaluation of the existing sponsorships to see how they aid the student body.
A Trinity News poll conducted last week indicated a close race, with the candidates separated by just one per cent. Holmes was expected to win 47.6%, and Harrington 46.6%.
