Undergraduate students will cast their ballots this week in the Student Government Association direct elections, which are open until midnight on Friday, April 1. The ballot is available via the front page of the myNEU student portal.

This year there is only one slate on the ballot: ChangeNU, which includes Elliot Horen, CIS’18, as candidate for student body president, and Suchira Sharma, DMSB’19, as candidate for executive vice president. Profiles of the candidates are available on the ballot and in materials circulated by the candidates.

There will be a “Meet the Candidates” event on Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. in Krentzman Quad, and pizza will be served. Candidates must gather 375 student signatures to be placed on the ballot. At least 20 percent of the undergraduate student body must vote in order for the election to be legitimate. Otherwise the SGA Senate will determine the election.

“Voting is an important measure students can use to enhance their student experience,” Student Body President Eric Tyler, CIS’16, said in a statement. “SGA saw a record-setting level of student participation last year, and I hope we will continue to see that momentum of student participation grow this year.”

There are also two referenda questions on this year’s ballot, both of them posed by the Husky Environmental Action Team:

1) “Do you believe Northeastern should reduce its usage of plastic bags by charging a renewable energy fee of $.05 per plastic bag and the use of plastic bags?” (If students vote “yes,” the referendum proposes that a $.05 fee per plastic bag be charged at dining centers such as Rebecca’s and the Curry Student Center and that the funds collected be given to SGA’s Renewable Energy Fee.)

2) “Do you think that for every garbage bin on campus there should be an accompanying recycling bin?” (If students vote “yes,” the referendum proposes that Northeastern place a recycling bin next to every garbage bin on campus, clear the recycling bins and garbage bins simultaneously, and clearly label the recycling bin and specify it is for plastic materials.

The questions are non-binding and do not result in immediate policy changes but rather signal the student body’s interest in the issues.

More information on the direct elections can be found on the SGA website sga.neu.edu as well as on the SGA’s Facebook and Twitter pages.

Note: This story was updated to reflect a change in the format of the “Meet the Candidate” event scheduled for Wednesday.