Meet your ASBSU 2021 interim presidential candidates

Following the impeachment trial of former President Angel Cantu on Nov. 4, 2020, the Associated Students of Boise State University (ASBSU) is holding a 2021 interim presidential election. The election will be held Jan. 20, 2021, during an ASBSU Assembly Meeting and is open to the general public. The elected president will hold office until the official election in March or April of this year, according to ASBSU’s website. During the general presidential election of 2021, voting will be open to all students at Boise State.

Jonathan Washam

Jonathan Washam, senior business administration major, is focusing on giving back to the university and the students at Boise State. 

“I want to run as a way to give back. I’m hoping to ultimately give back to the university, that’s the ultimate goal for me. Given everything ASBSU has been through recently, being able to come in and be able to help get things back in order, that would be great,” Washam said. 

Overall, Washam wants to provide stability for ASBSU.

“My main goal is to not take on anything new, but rather finish all the business that the current administration has going on. I just want to come in and I want to do a good job, that’s the most important thing to me,” Washam said.

Eric Kline

Eric Kline, sophomore supply chain management major, has been involved in ASBSU since his freshman year and is confident he can adequately serve the student body.

“I truly believe Boise State is the best university in the world and I think we need a student government that reflects that. I know that I am willing to put in the dedication, the time and the expertise to make that happen,” Kline said.

Ultimately, Kline wants to work on rebuilding ASBSU’s reputation. 

“We have a unique opportunity right now to take a step back and look at the process, what we have, what we’ve had in the past, and what led up to this impeachment trial, which was really damaging for ASBSU. I think we need to take a look at our practices and evaluate whether or not we’re on the right path,” Kline said. 

Kayla Magana

Kayla Magana, junior biology major, is currently a part of the ASBSU executive council and holds the position of vice president of student organizational affairs. Through the presidential election, Magana wants students to feel supported and listened to. 

“Even if I don’t get the president position, I feel like as an exec team we’re already moving forward knowing we need to be more transparent with students. Moving forward, I really want to emphasize taking all perspectives into account, I really want to repair what we have going and end the year strong,” Magana said.

Magana’s biggest goal is to listen to students and make decisions based on what is best for the majority population.

“I hope students are able to trust me with their ideas and their opinions, and trust me to keep them in the know. I want to let them know that any choice I make I will always take into account as many opinions I can and any decision I make will always be in the best interest of everyone,” Magana said. 

Angel Cantu

Angel Cantu, senior political science major, feels he owes it to students at Boise State to fight for their rights. 

“Out of a sense of duty to the students and staff and faculty I’ve worked with, I feel as though I owe it to them to continue to fight for students and try to represent them. It seemed like during the impeachment, a lot of [students] felt disenfranchised due to the outcome. I just want to set an example for them and show them that they can still believe in ASBSU,” Cantu said.

Cantu encourages students to be more involved in ASBSU.

“I want to tell students to not give up on ASBSU, even if they might not like who’s in ASBSU. I think it’s important for students to have hope and if they don’t like the way ASBSU is now, then do something about it when they have the opportunity to during elections,” Cantu said.
For more information on each presidential candidate, visit the ASBSU election website.