Courtesy of Andrew Boanoh and Jalen Bradley

YCC presidential candidate Andrew Boanoh ’27 and vice presidential candidate Jalen Bradley ’27 are running on a platform of friendship, collective vision and loopholes. Together, they hope to redefine the nature of the Council to a more proactive, present body.

“I think that a lot of YCC proposals go past the administration,” Boanoh said. “What we are good at is finding loopholes within these ‘No’s’ and coming up with new ideas that circumvent that and find solutions to problems.”

“Ask my mom; I’m a stubborn man, and my thinking is, I don’t think when the administration says ‘No’ they really mean ‘No’,” he added.

Boanoh has a long history with the YCC. He has served as a First-Year Class Council president and is currently the cultural and religious policy director.

He has a “deep love” for Yale’s campus and believes that the sole way to express it is to take on the role of president of the Council.

He also believes there is a disconnect between the hours he and many other student representatives put in and what students know about what occurs behind closed doors. He hopes to be in the position to not only focus on accountability within the administration but also within the YCC itself.

“I want you to know how hard we’re fighting for you,” Boanoh said. “[YCC President] Mimi puts 25 hours a week into this, and a lot of that goes unseen. We’re going to make sure that’s something that’s seen.”

Bradley also got his introduction to student government through the First-Year Class Council as a representative for Timothy Dwight College. It was also there where he first met Boanoh.

Boanoh, a philosophy major, said he tends to think theoretically and in “broad strokes.” When looking for a running mate, he quickly thought of Bradley, a tactical thinker and policy forward, a perfect partner. They believe that their close friendship sets them apart from other tickets, and they attribute their difference in background to their conjoined chemistry.

“I think I’m most effective in bridging those communicative gaps, whereas Jalen is really focused on fixing the little things that affect people’s lives in big ways,” Boanoh said. “And I think our combination works very well. It helps that we’re also good friends. Like, this is my boy.”

Outside of the YCC, Bradley is the publicist for the Black Men’s Union and a Communication and Consent Educator.

He hopes to assume the position of vice president with a mindset of optimism.

“I have grown to not really want to keep talking about ‘Oh, all these things suck or they need to be changed,’” Bradley said. “I want to be in the room where I can have an effect, and the student body is so creative that even if the administration isn’t on our side on certain issues, there are loopholes to get stuff done.”

If the administration is unwilling to reintroduce to-go cups, for example, the YCC could continue an effort Bradley made this year to give away reusable stainless steel cups for free on Cross Campus. Familiar with past sustainability efforts, Bradley also hopes to bring water filling stations to most colleges and minimize food waste in dining halls.

Their platform, wide-reaching, hopes to promote a collective voice. One way they plan to do so is through their promotional website, “The Cloud,” where students can offer input and receive answers to pertinent questions.

“The YCC isn’t our organization, our being me and Jalen,” Boanoh said. “It’s an organization for everyone. While we have our vision, our platform is a living, breathing document. We want everyone to contribute to it, and we’re here to take those ideas, put in the work to make them reality, and then put them on the front desk of the president in ways that haven’t been.”

They proposed the introduction of new laundry machines; know-your-rights clinics and consultations with immigration lawyers for impacted students; increased Muslim prayer spaces; expansion of mental health resources; and conducting semesterly town halls with University President Maurie McInnis.

Familiar with the fact that many of these aspirations are unprecedented, they don’t believe that demanding administrative attention to the things that affect students’ daily lives is a big ask.

They believe that it isn’t fair, the administration’s abrupt rollouts of new dining, health and student life policies.

“We’re never going to promise that we’re going to get you lunch back in Davenport,” Boanoh said. “But what we are looking to promise is that that announcement isn’t going to hit you on a random Tuesday afternoon when you’re not expecting it.”

Voting begins on April 10 at 9 a.m. on YaleConnect and closes on April 11 at 9 p.m.