Despite a lack of experience in campus government, A.S. presidential candidate Keshav “Kiki” Boddula has never considered himself an underdog in the election race. Boddula believes that his stance as the “people’s candidate,” not a long political resume, will leave a strong impression on voters.
Keshav Boddula
“I feel that I can represent the students’ needs best,” the John Muir College junior said. “I don’t believe that experience is required. I feel that that sort of knowledge is easily learned. It’s not easy to be able to relate to different types of people, and that’s what I have done for the last three years.”
While other candidates have entered the race under slates, Boddula entered as an independent candidate — a maverick move by some standards.
“It is extremely difficult,” said A.S. President Jenn Pae, who successfully ran as in independent last year. “It doesn’t happen very often. It’s difficult that you don’t have the set amount of people on the slate, because that support and networking base is pretty important.”
Instead of confining himself to a slate, Boddula said his experience as a sort of “social renaissance man” has allowed him to identify with all groups and circles, unlike his rival candidates.
“As president, you shouldn’t have lines and ideologies,” Boddula said. “I’ve had involvement with fraternities, the Hip Hop Club, members of [the Student Affirmative Action Committee], [the California Public Interest Research Group] and a pretty vast array of people. [Revolution! presidential candidate] Kevin Hanson identifies with Greeks, just like [Student Empowerment! presidential candidate] Chris Sweeten does with the racially marginalized. I don’t associate or identify myself with much of anything, except I’m a human being and I’m a college student.”
Boddula has also served as a mentor and tutor in outreach programs such as TRIO and Friends Understanding Needs. He plans to support such programs if elected, as well as any other progressive organizations.
“UCSD needs anything that effectively supports student involvement,” Boddula said. “In programs like F.U.N., the difference you make in one kid’s life is impacting. It’s programs like that that should be supported. [With] Greek organizations, I wouldn’t put any more into [them]. I feel that these are people who are already privileged with greater resources, and they have more of a financial basis.”
Specifically, Boddula wants to work to increase the wages of American Federation of State and County Municipal Employees on campus. The union has recently voted in favor of a strike and talks with the university have reached an impasse. It would cost an insignificant amount for UCSD to upgrade AFSCME workers from a salary that is barely minimum wage, he said.
However, the UC Office of the President has argued that the wage hikes are not possible as a result of cuts from the California state budget.
Boddula admitted that forming any of his visions into concrete plans to be passed by the A.S. Council will be a chore in itself.
As an independent party president, Pae has had difficulty working with A.S. senators. Last year, Pae’s budget plan approval was drawn out over three weeks of negotiations and a seven-hour A.S. Council meeting. Boddula will face similar challenges if elected, Pae said.
“There were some difficulties with A.S. because the structure of it makes it ripe for arguing and debating,” she said. “The president only starts plans, and then the council goes through the process of approving it. That’s something for Kiki to tackle. Like me, he’d be coming in as an independent and without any ties to slates, which would have given him a foundation of people to work with.”
Twenty of 28 candidates running to become A.S. senators are members of a slate, ensuring a large slate presence on the A.S. Council next year. Still, Boddula emphasizes a unifying theme in his independent candidacy.
“I would first try to really gain trust from senators,” he said. “That is hard, but that would be it. I’m very open in what I do and stand for. I would try to unify the different beliefs and slates to construct rather than break apart.”
Boddula’s vision for his presidency mirrors Pae’s administration, in which Pae has strived to create a positive working environment.
“I kept a very positive image of A.S.,” she said. “I tried to put myself out there and work together. I didn’t want A.S. to bicker and argue about the little things.”
Having the A.S. Senate avoid debates will require not political power but the power to communicate and understand, Boddula said.
Such understanding spurred Boddula’s attempt to help an underachieving child in the TRIO program. The fatherless boy from the program was in need of not only a mentor but also transportation from the program, Boddula said. With permission from the boy’s mother, Boddula began giving the child rides home. However, administrative policies prevented Boddula from helping the child beyond tutoring.
“The boy couldn’t make it to the tutoring program without a ride home, and the kid was heartbroken,” Boddula said. “To me, it personally reflects my passion in reaching out and wanting to create equality and opportunity. It’s just one kid. He has so much potential. It’s like society is becoming [so] contract-oriented, it’s lost its humanity.”
It is humanity rather than experience that Boddula said he would like to bring to student government, and he answered critics of his limited political experience by emphasizing that “my experience comes from being a student.”
