SAM wins the most votes, Progressive Staff Alliance breaks through among staff

Participatory governance at Tilburg has been shaken up again. Student party SAM has won the most votes and now stands equal to Front in number of seats. Staff party Progressive Staff Alliance enters as a newcomer with two seats. This is evident from the preliminary election results.

Front is no longer the largest party. After a nerve-racking election week on the Tilburg campus, that is the outcome of the participatory governance elections. In the Marga Klompé building, in a room full of nervous students and staff, these preliminary election results were announced.

The party for the active student had managed to claim victory no fewer than eleven times in the past twelve years. Now Front loses one seat. With 1,492 votes, the faction secures four seats, good for a shared first place.

Lead candidate Pepijn Beusmans: ‘Of course it is unfortunate that we lose a seat. On the other hand, we think SAM is a fine party and we look forward to the cooperation. I think we can still achieve a lot together.’

Visibility pays off

At SAM, they are uncorking the champagne bottles. The faction gains one seat, bringing its total to four seats. Cheers erupt on that side of the room as the election results are announced. The party does not surpass major competitor Front in number of seats, but now stands on equal footing with it. SAM did, however, receive the most votes, no fewer than 1,827.

The result is especially festive for Nine Blad, number 9 on the list. She has been elected with 246 preferential votes, more than the number 1 or 2 candidates. ‘I am very happy that it worked out. We are extremely pleased with an extra seat.’ Wiktoria Kaminska, current chair of the faction: ‘We worked incredibly hard for this, with nine candidates supported by a great many friends on campus. We were also visible throughout the year. That pays off.’

The ninth seat on the council goes, just as last year, to Progressive Student Alliance. The party significantly shook things up in the previous elections by breaking the hegemony of Front and SAM. Now the progressive student party has managed to maintain its position as the third student faction with 718 votes.

Staff

There is also a shift among staff. Staff vote only once every two years, so every vote also counts twice as heavily.

Newcomer Progressive Staff Alliance wins two seats based on 270 votes. A first of its kind. The staff party with a progressive voice establishes itself firmly in Tilburg university politics, where for a long time two staff parties had dominated.

Lead candidate Antonio Pinilla: ‘We are enthusiastic. Our programme was our greatest strength. We want to make the university more democratic and revise collaborations with some partners and other universities.’

TiU International, meanwhile, has to give up half of its seats. The party for international staff receives 323 votes and will have to make do with two seats again in the coming period.

At Independents, meanwhile, there is nothing to fear. With 793 votes and five seats, the general staff party remains the largest in Tilburg’s university council.

Faculty councils

It was also a close contest for the faculty councils. The Active parties, founded in 2020 by faction Front, have once again won many votes. In the faculty council of Economics and Management, all seven seats go to Active TiSEM.

At Social and Behavioral Sciences, Active also performs strongly. The faction wins five of the seven seats. The other two go to Stimulus.

At the law faculty, the picture is very different. Last year, Vrijspraak kept competitor Active-TLS at bay, with five seats to two. This year, the Active party did not participate in the elections. All seven seats go to Vrijspraak.

The picture is mixed at the Faculty of Humanities and Digital Sciences. Half of the seats on the council, three in total, go to Active TSHD, while the other three seats go to Endurante.

For the theological faculty council, no elections were necessary. The five students of De Studentenpartij are automatically assigned a seat.

Turnout continues to decline

It was an eventful week. The sun was shining, students in colourful T-shirts and sweaters were everywhere on campus. Football was played, people drove around on a pedal go-kart, and watermelons were handed out. And above all: campaigning took place. But Tilburg students were strikingly absent on campus.

Turnout figures are historically low. Fewer than a quarter of students (23.19%) cast a vote for the university council, slightly less than last year (26.05%). Staff found their way to the ballot box more readily. For the university council, 45.05% of staff cast a vote, a slight decline compared with two years ago (45.87%).

Preliminary result

The election result is preliminary. In two weeks, on Thursday 7 May, the result will be officially confirmed. The seat distribution usually remains intact, but the count may turn out differently. In 2025, the election victory of newcomer Progressive Student Alliance was less large than initially thought: two seats were revised down to one seat.

_Advertentie.