With two teams in the running, the Commerce Society (ComSoc) awaits its first contested executive election since 2021.
While of the team are currently on exchange, The Journal virtually sat down with Team PAC composed of Presidential candidate Prem Mehta-Spooner, Vice-Presidential candidate (Student Affairs), Connor McCourt, and Vice-Presidential candidate (Operations) Amin Nazari, all Comm ’26, to discuss their platform, based on three pillars: continuity, credibility, and community.
Team SRA consisting of Presidential candidate Spiro Saites, Vice-Presidential (Student Affairs) candidate Riya Shahani, and Vice-Presidential (Operations) candidate Allisha Zhou, all Comm ’27, initially entered the race but later dropped out without providing reasoning.
Team ASK, consisting of Presidential candidate Steven Xiong, Vice-Presidential (Student Affairs) candidate Kieran Kimberley, and Vice-Presidential (Operations) candidate Aiza Mudassar, all Comm ’26, are running on a platform focused on building a stronger community, amplifying the voices equity-deserving students, and encouraging entrepreneurship if elected. Despite repeated attempts to Team ASK, they didn’t respond in time for publication.
Continuity
Mehta-Spooner highlighted his experience as the current Advisory Board Chair of Smith Commerce Society, emphasizing his commitment to building on the legacy of previous executives. A key priority for him is conducting a comprehensive policy review, updating and resolving ambiguous policies, with a goal of examining each one within his one-year term.
When asked about equity, diversity, inclusion, and Indigenization (EDII) efforts within ComSoc, Mehta-Spooner shared his experience working with David Youssef, director of student engagement at the Smith School of Business, where he provided input on data collection and student surveys.
Mehta-Spooner noted collaborating with Associate Dean (Undergraduate Programs) of the Smith School of Business, Arcan Nalca and recognized the importance of ensuring every student’s voice is heard.
In Team PAC’s platform, Mehta-Spooner highlights enhancing EDII training for co-chairs and “ensure assembly processes are inclusive” within the society.
“I’m known as a rule stickler, but I’m also wanting to reframe this a little bit and frame it as an opportunity to understand how our policies and governance systems can actually and help out students,” Mehta-Spooner said in an interview with The Journal.
Credibility
Nazari, a former AMS representative to Assembly in his second year and a student senator in his third year, spoke about his experience representing ComSoc externally and how he’s excited to focus on internal operations, including the financial, technological, and marketing portfolios of the society.
As part of his commitment to credibility, Nazari aims to build trust and transparency by ensuring financial ability within ComSoc. Touching on ComSoc financials, Nazari said he’s not currently aware of the society’s financial standing, as external aren’t kept in the loop.
“As their student government, first and foremost, we’re public servants,” Nazari said. “The onus is on us to make sure we’re providing the avenues for them to voice their opinions, their concerns and their thoughts to us.”
Nazari is committed to improving financial accessibility within the society by making budgets publicly accessible on the ComSoc website.
Community
McCourt, who hasn’t previously been involved with ComSoc, expressed his ion for the Smith Commerce community through his involvement in ComSoc clubs such as the Smith Black Business Association and FreshSight Queen’s Consulting. He spoke to his commitment to fostering inclusivity and connection where everyone feels ed and valued.
Aiming to increase student interaction through community-based activities, McCourt emphasized his enthusiasm for end-of-year events like the boat cruise and gala for upper-year students—both events he hopes to enhance.
“I think community outreach is just deeper than the single year [students] come in with their cohort, but through all years of the program,” McCourt said.
McCourt also hopes to implement mentorship-based programs for commerce students to create a cohesive community. He mentioned his current involvement with mentoring and ing high school students via his work as the co-chair of Smith Commerce High School Liaison.
ComSoc election results will be announced on Feb. 3.
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