The For U campaign — composed of presidential candidate Fernando Sepulveda Sagaseta, vice presidential candidate Aaron Gonzales and treasurer candidate Dylan Hall — is running on nearly ten years of combined experience, and what they call a commitment to meeting students where they are.
For junior Sepulveda Sagaseta, the path to running for student body president was not immediately clear. He is an international student from Mexico, studying business analytics and innovation, technology and design.
His journey in student government began his freshman year on the First-Year Leadership Council. He was mentored by then vice president Angela Ansah, and worked his way up through the ranks of student government.
Sepulveda Sagaseta eventually served on the academic liaison council, where he was a college of engineering liaison.
“I’ve pretty much grown up a little bit in student government,” Sepulveda Sagaseta said. “ For the most part, this is like a completely new experience to me.”
He currently serves as chief of staff for student government while also serving as Engineering Student Council president. It was because of his experience as Engineering Student Council president that he decided to run for Student Government president.
“It became very apparent very quickly to me that there were a lot of areas on campus that had their own thing going on,” Sepulveda Sagaseta said. “And if we didn’t collaborate and we didn’t unite those two worlds, that we weren’t really servicing all students as well as we could be.”
That emphasis on unity is central to the For U platform. Their campaign is focused on three pillars: academics, student life and community. They also hope to make students feel represented and proud to vote.
“This campaign has been all about bringing in voters who don’t really think student government is there for them or not advocating for them,” Sepulveda Sagaseta said. “We’re looking to change that.”
The campaign has drawn support from leaders across campus organizations. Parker Osth, the chair of the Association of Greek Letter Organizations, said For U was the first campaign to reach out and collaborate with Greek leadership.
“They are the first campaign in SG I have seen in my time at UM to extend that olive branch to our community,” Osth said. “They have been doing the groundwork in building consensus for all of campus, not just the typical organizations.”
Osth is a member of the For U campaign, and has helped connect the campaign to the over 4,000 students involved in Greek life. He also collaborated in building the campaign’s graphic identity.
Gonzales, a junior from Portsmouth, New Hampshire, is studying legal studies with a minor in sports administration. He currently serves as director of University Affairs, overseeing the Campus Liaison Council. The CLC negotiates directly with administration in areas such as dining, parking, housing and transportation.
Through CLC, Gonzales said he has worked on initiatives such as installing shuttle stop covers, expanding Freebee routes to reach high traffic places like Trader Joe’s and Vox. He has also worked on coordinating the distribution of umbrellas to first year students, which will begin next school year.
“We work directly with the highest level of administration to discuss student issues to come to solutions,” Gonzales said. “[Members of the For U ticket] have the experience and the ideas to put into action and actually make changes to the campus.”
Although he does not have personal experience on the FLC, he has been able to work with freshmen CLC members as a mentor. A major focus for Gonzales is continuing student life improvements and mentoring future leaders through the First-Year Leadership Council, which the vice president oversees.
Hall, a triple major in finance, business technology and sustainable business, brings a financial background to the ticket. She currently serves as community relations coordinator for the Student Activities Fee Allocation Committee and works as a finance intern with Student Activities and Student Affairs at UM. She is also the treasurer of Women in Business.
“I’ve seen how important financial literacy and advocacy are, especially for underprivileged groups,” Hall said. “Seeing the direct impact it can have on these communities is what motivated me to run.”
Hall said her experience reviewing and allocating student organization budgets has highlighted concerns about funding structures, particularly for ‘umbrella organizations’ who must divide their allocation among multiple sub-groups.
“It’s not just about increasing the funding,” Hall said. “It’s about representation.”
If elected, the ticket’s immediate priorities include working toward 24-hour access at Richter Library, expanding dining options and hours — especially on weekends and late nights — integrating Cane Cards into Apple Wallet and increasing student ticket capacity at athletic events.
Sepulveda Sagesta said beginning conversations about 24-hour library access would be a “day one” priority to ensure implementation by next academic year.
Beyond specific initiatives, the ticket emphasizes transparency and accessibility. Sepulveda Sagesta said he plans to maintain an open-door policy, including a public calendar link for students to schedule a meeting with him directly.
“I think the mistake Student Government makes very often is expecting students to come to us,” he said. “It’s our responsibility to go to them.”
While Sepulveda Sagesta said a win would make him incredibly proud, more than anything, it would make him feel “a sense of responsibility to start getting things done.”
But, regardless of the outcome, he encouraged students to vote and engage with the election process.
“We want to be representative of all students,” he said. “The best way to do that is to vote, and then share your ideas.”
Voting ends tonight at 11:59 p.m., with results being announced Thursday afternoon. Students can vote via Engage.