Sixteen candidates are running for 12 open senate positions in USC’s Undergraduate Student Government (USG) for the 2025-26 academic year. Ten students are running independently while six are running in pairs for the legislative branch, and all candidates will speak at a Senatorial Forum on February 11 to discuss their platforms.
Samara Holloway
Samara Holloway is a junior on the pre-law track majoring in non-governmental organizations and social change, business administration and social sciences with a concentration in psychology. Holloway is a member of the Black Pre-Law Student Association, co-founded the Radical Theory Club and serves as the executive aide to the speaker of the USG senate. She said her platform is guided by the Ubuntu philosophy “I am because we are,” focusing on amplifying student voices, prioritizing health and wellness and creating centralized resource guides for students.
Mason Yonover
Mason Yonover is a sophomore majoring in English. Yonover’s platform is primarily focused on more freedom for students. Yonover advocates for removing campus security barriers, such as the fence around Doheny Library, ID entrance checkpoints and the USC housing guest policy. “I’m an advocate for less pointless bureaucracy and more freedom for students,” Yonover wrote in his candidate statement.
Sydney White
Sydney White is a junior majoring in film and television production and minoring in real estate finance. White co-founded the club Blossom, which helps students practice real-world skills like budgeting, and is an undergraduate representative for the African American Cinema Society. She also served as USG executive aid to the chief diversity officer her sophomore year, where she worked with the advocacy committee. She was inaugurated as a senator in December after a reorganization of USG’s structure following leader resignations. White’s reelection campaign highlights implementing programs that promote intersectionality, such as an international fair, increasing community engagement through off-campus activities and working with the communications department to create streamlined access to campus resources.
Moy Valdez
Moy Valdez is a junior majoring in political science. Valdez is a transfer student and served as the student body president at California State University San Marcos and a commissioner for the City of Sacramento under the Sacramento Youth Commission. Moy’s platform focuses on engaging students in USG, providing more resources and financial support to students, particularly newly admitted and transfer students, and supporting student-led organizations.
Christian Cook
Christian Cook is a junior majoring in American studies and ethnicity and minoring in legal studies. Cook is a transfer student and a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. Cook’s campaign focuses on expanding the transfer student orientation program, implementing daytime Lyft and Uber stipends to explore Los Angeles, providing portable air conditioning during heatwaves for on-campus housing, mandating EpiPens in dining halls and reintroducing Black health and wealth programs.
Jad Kilani and Zehran Muqtadir
Jad Kilani is a freshman on the pre-law track majoring in political science and minoring in legal studies. Kilani was inaugurated as a USG senator in December after a reorganization of USG’s structure following leader resignations. Zehran Muqtadir is a freshman majoring in public policy and the service chair of USC’s Muslim Student Union. Their campaign states they are guided by transparency, collaboration and representation. Their proposed projects include improving USG community outreach, reducing financial aid office wait times, organizing school spirit events and increasing student representation in university administrative decisions.
Sudeepta Murthy
Sudeepta Murthy is a freshman majoring in public policy and data analytics. Murthy is a member of USC’s foreign service society Delta Phi Epsilon and the Bollywood fusion dance team Zeher. Murthy serves as USG senate aide where she worked on the Food After Hours Project, expanding the hours of Trojan Grounds during finals week and creating dining alternatives including vending machines. Murthy’s platform focuses on C.A.R.E: Campus, Accessibility, Reliability, Engagement. Murthy plans to extend library and Tutor Campus Center hours, create new working spaces, expand meal plans through partnerships with the USC village, subsidize Doordash for students and create a stronger connection between students and USG.
Justin Shih and Karim Debian
Justin Shih is a sophomore majoring in artificial intelligence. Shih’s platform focuses on dining experiences, and seeks to implement EBT options at Seeds marketplace and increase eco-friendly packaging for food products. Shih’s platform also includes increasing school spirit by creating dress themes for sporting events. Karim Debian is a sophomore whose platform focuses on advocating for transfer students by providing workshops and advertising orientation programs, mentorship opportunities and campus involvement initiatives. Debian’s goals include creating a more inclusive environment on campus by organizing more cultural events.
Kevin Hoang
Kevin Hoang is a sophomore whose campaign advocates for increased transparency on financial aid policies to promote increased accessibility. To accomplish this, Hoang’s platform includes the creation of a financial aid student liaison to address student concerns. Hoang’s platform also includes enhancing campus inclusivity by increasing funding for on-campus activities. His campaign also promises to install a Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant at the Ronald Tutor Campus Center.
Dakota Driemeyer
Dakota Driemeyer is a junior whose platform includes expanding Fryft zones to off-campus areas such as The Grove. Driemeyer’s platform is built on “achievable, student-focused solutions,” such as ending USG stipends, allowing unused dining dollars to transfer across semesters and requiring at least two copies of all required textbooks to be present in USC libraries. This is part of Driemeyer’s proposed plan to increase tuition spending transparency.
Andrew Cardenas
Andrew Cardenas is a sophomore majoring in neuroscience whose platform is built around expanding access to mental health resources, addressing food insecurities amongst students by subsidizing meal programs and increasing transparency on budget decisions for student media organizations. Cardenas’ platform also promises a more equitable environment for Registered Student Organizations (RSOs) and greater independence for media organizations on campus.
Jeremiah Boisrond
Jeremiah Boisrond is a sophomore majoring in legal studies running for a second term in the USG senate. Boisrond’s platform promises increased food accessibility on campus by advancing the Trojan food pantry, increasing transparency in student fees and connecting students to legal aid resources to assist with housing, immigration and other potential legal issues. In Boisrond’s first term, USG passed bills that addressed ROTC housing and sustainability.
Kian Salek and Sabeeh Mirza
Kian Salek and Sabeeg Mirza are running on a platform of increased viability of dining dollars, expanding USC Wi-Fi access, supporting student press and advocating for student initiatives including small businesses. Both students also promise at least one library will be open 24 hours a day, seven days a week and an expansion of the weekly farmer’s market in McCarthy Quad.