Horatio Gilman and Will Raffier are running for student body president and vice president under the SAM Party in the Student Government Spring 2025 election.

Both Gilman and Raffier are current members of the SG Senate.

Gilman is a junior studying civil engineering. He’s involved in multiple clubs and organizations on campus, including Hicks Honors College, Kappa Alpha Omicron, the Wetlands Club, the American Society of Civil Engineers and more. 

Raffier is a junior studying multimedia journalism. Like Gilman, he’s involved in many different clubs and organizations, including the Honors College, the UNF Esports Club, the Honors Student Union, UNF Shadows and others. 

Below are some questions Spinnaker asked Gilman and Raffier regarding the election, SG and the university.

Why did you both decide to run for president and vice president?

Raffier said he thought there was a “cognitive dissonance” between the student body and SG. Because of this, he ran to try and close the gap. 

As a commuter himself, Gilman said he feels like commuters at UNF are underrepresented even though they make up the majority of the UNF population.

“I think UNF has a very unique identity in itself, and unique culture and traditions here, that people kind of forget about,” said Gilman, “​​I think this is an awesome campus, and I really want to reflect that. I want people to see the campus how I see it.”

What initiatives would you like to introduce during your term?

Gilman and Raffier discussed four main initiatives: streamlining the funding process for RSOs, expanding the commissions initiative, lowering the cost of printing and increasing transparency about on-campus events. 

Gilman and Raffier said through their experiences in different clubs on campus, they realized the funding process for RSOs is difficult to follow. They said having an easier funding process would allow for clubs to host more events and increase engagement.

In terms of expanding commissions, they want more RSOs to become commissions to “make sure everyone is fully represented here at UNF,” said Raffier. 

Gilman said they want more input from students and more output from SG when it comes to on-campus events. He said SG should be transparent about what it spends on OzFest performers and other big events so students can feel informed and represented.

What issues on campus should SG focus on?

Gilman and Raffier said they would like to improve the culture on campus and increase “Osprey pride.” 

They said they want students to know about all the facilities and resources available to them. 

“We have a lot of natural resources that are free on campus that a lot of students can just use between classes,” Gilman said, “and I really want to push that and emphasize that this is what we have at UNF, and this is what makes us special.”

In terms of staffing, how would you go about recruiting staff for your cabinet?

“So it’s really finding people engaged, and looking at, as we canvass, who’s really engaged and who might have these skills that we need, and who would be willing to work with us,” said Gilman.

“I think one thing that we would look at is who’s already involved with Student Government, and who’s willing to listen to the community at UNF, and who’s willing to adjust their views so that it can better reflect all 17,000 students here, instead of just the 50 people that go to the senate meetings,” Raffier said.

How will you support all students, both on-campus students and commuters?

Gilman said he thinks RSOs are the key to bringing people together, both on-campus students and commuters. He said a community can not be made up of only him and Raffier.

“We need everyone to be engaged, and that’s through letting them choose how they want to be engaged,” Gilman said.

Why should students vote for you?

Raffier said he and Gilman love talking to people and getting feedback. Because they’re both new to SG, they’re coming in with “a fresh pair of eyes.” He said they want to use the feedback they receive from their different peers to make campus the best for every student.

“It’s getting a little stale in Student Government,” Gilman said. “When we went to the debate, I was a little disappointed by the people we were debating against, because I felt like they could have brought in more creative ideas for their goals, and that was really disappointing for me.”

Gilman also said he wants to use new and creative ideas to bring students “unique and diverse solutions.”

Is there anything else you want students to know?

“We’re here for you,” Gilman responded.

Gilman said he wants to “make a positive impact, and make people’s lives a little easier, and a little more fun.”

Raffier said students should know their main goal is to make sure every single student is represented.

“It doesn’t matter what your background is, what your major is, what your GPA is, if you’re a commuter, if you’re on campus,” Raffier said. “UNF is the college that you guys chose, and we want to keep you guys here,  and know that this is your college.”

___

For more information or news tips, or if you see an error in this story or have any compliments or concerns, contact editor@unfspinnaker.com.