By Saffron Geyle
The 2026 ANUSA Annual Election season has officially begun, with candidates launching their campaigns this evening. ELEVATE your ANUSA is one such group, running on a progressive ticket with current General Secretary Malakai King contesting the positions of ANUSA President and Undergraduate Member of the ANU Council.
King was elected as General Secretary as an Independent candidate in last year’s ANUSA election. In his role over the course of this year, King has assisted in establishing the ANUSA Postgraduate and Research Network, securing a second annual graduation period, and has delivered a searchable decisions database aiming to increase the accountability of ANUSA.
ELEVATE your ANUSA claims to be an “independent, progressive and experienced team of students who want to take student representation at ANU to the next level”. King accredits his year on the ANUSA Executive as the lead-up to “building a team to help deliver further change we need”.
“Students have spent the last two years being told what is being done to their university. ELEVATE exists to make sure the next chapter is one students help write.”
ELEVATE reportedly has over a dozen candidates, due to contest multiple positions on the ANUSA Executive. This includes all Academic Officer positions, several General Representatives, several College Representatives, and both Postgraduate Member and Undergraduate Member on the ANU Council.
ELEVATE noted that it is “not a faction or political party”. Operating on progressive politics, they aim to deliver “the change students need”. They also highlight their “experienced” and “diverse” team of candidates that will allow their ticket to “truly represent ANU students and their needs”.
“We are committed to ensuring the representation of those who have historically been underrepresented within ANUSA, including international students, postgraduate students, rural, regional and remote students, and those living off-campus. We’re empowered with institutional knowledge across ANUSA, autonomous Departments, clubs, and ResComms.”
ELEVATE further noted that the ticket “is currently inviting students from across the university to put themselves forward to represent their peers”. If interested, students are urged to reach out to ELEVATE your ANUSA social media accounts or submit the ANUSA EOI form.
The campaign has highlighted their independent approach to student politics, with many of their team members being new to student politics altogether. The official date for nominations will commence on 8 September. Online polling will be held in Week 9 of Semester 2, commencing at 9am on 6 October and closing at 12pm on 9 October 2026.
“Our ticket chose the name ELEVATE, because we want to find candidates who are committed to making ANUSA take a step up,” King said.
Observer will be following along closely with the upcoming ANUSA election season.
More to come.
Graphics by Anushkaa Ahuja
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