Elections
AY 2026 - 2027
Join GAPSA!
Want to make a difference in our Graduate and Professional Student Community? Looking to build community across our schools? The Graduate and Professional Student Assembly (GAPSA) is currently hosting elections for our executive board! Nominate yourself or a friend to join us! Regardless of whether you want to host events, manage grants, write new policies, or drive new advocacy initiatives, we have a role for you!
President & Vice Presidents
The Executive Branch of GAPSA consists of the President, Executive Vice President, and five Vice Presidents (Finance, Advocacy, Operations, and Programming). The Executive Branch oversees GAPSA’s day-to-day operations under the direction of the General Assembly, represents Penn’s graduate and professional students, and works with various campus partners, offices, and centers.
JMHH 360
February 18 at 7:00 p.m.
(and March 4 at 7:00 p.m., if needed).
Council Chairs
The Legislative Branch of GAPSA consists of 3 Councils. The Councils provide a forum for graduate students and fellows with shared interests to meet, discuss needs and concerns, and advocate on behalf of their constituencies through self-governance and student-led initiatives.
Each Council is led by a Chair, who works closely with Council members to oversee day-to-day operations, set the Council’s vision and priorities, and serve as the primary representative of the Council’s constituency. The Chair may also issue statements and work directly with relevant campus centers and offices.
Research Council: GSC 304, Feb. 18 at 6:00 p.m.
Professional Council: JMHH 360, Feb. 18 at 6:00 p.m.
IDEAL Council: ARCH 110, Feb. 18 at 5:30 p.m.
Speakers
The Speaker is the presiding officer of the General Assembly and is responsible for chairing meetings impartially, maintaining order, and protecting members’ substantive rights while supporting open, deliberative discussion and helping the body reach rough consensus when possible. The role requires a working command of Robert’s Rules of Order, the GAPSA Constitution and Bylaws, and any applicable special rules or operating procedures.
JMHH 360
April 15 at 7:00 p.m.
President & Vice Presidents
Chair of the Election
Speaker Stephen Lee (gapsa.speaker@gapsa.upenn.edu).
All questions and concerns shall be directed to the Chair.
Eligibility
All graduate and professional students enrolled in a degree-granting program at Penn are members of GAPSA and are eligible to run for GAPSA positions. This includes full-time, part-time, online, remote, and dissertator students.
Location & Date
Huntsman Hall (JMHH) 360
February 4 at 7:00 p.m. (and February 18 at 7:00 p.m., if needed).
Nomination
Nominations (self-nominations and nominations by others) must include the nominee’s name, Penn email address, affiliated schools, degree & programs and desired position(s). Nominations may be submitted in advance by email to Speaker Stephen Lee (gapsa.speaker@gapsa.upenn.edu) or made in person from the floor during the election.
All candidates must attend the election in person.
Nominees submitted by others will be contacted by the Speaker via email and must accept the nomination by email in advance or on the floor during the election.
Election Process
The election process is governed by the Constitution (Article IV, Section A) and Executive Board Bylaws (Section 8).
Speeches: Candidates speak in alphabetical order by surname for 3 minutes each (Bylaws §8.2).
Q&A: Up to 30 minutes total. Each candidate has 1 minute per question; the first response rotates alphabetically. The first respondent receives an additional 30 seconds after all candidates have answered (Bylaws §8.3).
Voting: All positions are decided by secret ballot through the General Assembly voting members, even if uncontested. With two candidates, a majority wins; with three or more, voting uses instant runoff (Constitution IV.A.6).
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Incumbent: Ludwig Zhao (gapsa.president@gapsa.upenn.edu)
The President serves as the public representative of GAPSA and the principal advocate for Penn’s graduate and professional students in engagements with the University and external stakeholders. The President participates in key University decision-making committees, councils, and dialogues. They are responsible for setting annual goals and overall strategy, chairing Executive Board meetings, and coordinating across the Executive team and GAPSA’s Councils (Research, Professional, and IDEAL). The President advocates for the needs and priorities of graduate and professional students. Additionally, the President organizes monthly meetings with G12 government and other graduate student leaders to discuss events, advocacy initiatives, and collaboration opportunities.
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Incumbent: Adam Ziada (gapsa.evp@gapsa.upenn.edu)
Become our chief of staff! The Executive Vice President is responsible for ensuring our executive team (Finance, Advocacy, Operations, & Programming) runs smoothly. This means coordinating our hiring, training, and onboarding process, managing our executive team meetings, taking minutes at our executive meetings, and putting out any fires that come up along the way. Conflict resolution is a key skill for this role.
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Incumbent: Carol Gao (gapsa.finance@gapsa.upenn.edu)
Become our head of Finances! The Vice President for Finance is responsible for ensuring all our grants go out in a timely fashions, building a fair and balanced budget, and keeping track of our expenses. If you like numbers, or enjoy developing grading rubrics then this position is right for you! Finally, organize our monthly meetings with all of the G12 treasurer's to talk grants, funding, and more!
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Incumbent: Chen Qian (gapsa.operations@gapsa.upenn.edu)
Take charge of GAPSA's logistics! The Vice President for Operations is in charge of coordinating our general assembly meetings, managing our website, organizing our happy hours, overseeing our social media campaigns, driving our alumni engagement, keeping our attendance records straight, and more! Work with a team of detail who are passionate about keeping the lights on!
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Incumbent: Yumi Kodama (gapsa.advocacy@gapsa.upenn.edu)
Professional Council, and IDEAL Council to set GAPSA's unified policy and advocacy agenda. Help coordinate GAPSA's advocacy forms, from our town halls, to University Council meetings, to meetings with staff and administrators. Organize our initiatives beyond Penn's walls, by networking with local politicians, releasing statements, and amplifying the voices of our students.
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Incumbent: Aryaman Shah
(gapsa.programming@gapsa.upenn.edu)
Take the lead on GAPSA's largest events, ranging from our yearly conference, to Grad Fest, to our Broadway Series, and Spring Gala. Manage a team of passionate students who want to have fun and bring people together from across our schools.
Council Chairs
Incumbent
Research Student Council: Devin B (gapsa.research@gapsa.upenn.edu)
Professional Student Council: Mehrnaz Zakershahrak (gapsa.professional@gapsa.upenn.edu)
IDEAL Student Council: Meha Chauhan (gapsa.ideal@gapsa.upenn.edu)
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Chair of the Election
President Ludwig Zhao (gapsa.president@gapsa.upenn.edu).
All questions and concerns shall be directed to the Chair.Eligibility
All RESEARCH STUDENTS enrolled in a degree-granting program at Penn are members of GAPSA and are eligible to run for GAPSA positions. This includes full-time, part-time, online, remote, and dissertator students.
Location & Date
Graduate Student Center 304
February 18 at 6:00 p.m.Nomination
Nominations (self-nominations and nominations by others) may be submitted in advance by filling out the nomination form or made in person from the floor during the election.
All candidates must attend the election in person.Nominees submitted by others will be contacted by the Chair via email and must accept the nomination by email in advance or on the floor during the election.
Election Process
The election process is governed by the Constitution (Article IV, Section B).
Speeches: Candidates speak in alphabetical order by surname for 3 minutes each.
Q&A: There is no fixed time limit for the Q&A beyond the agenda and the overall meeting duration. Each candidate will have up to 3 minutes to respond to each question.
Voting: The position is elected by eligible Council representatives (Constitution IV.B.2). Voting may be conducted either by consensus or by secret ballot. If a secret ballot is used, a majority determines the winner when there are two candidates; if there are three or more candidates, voting is conducted using the instant-runoff method.
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Chair of the Election
EVP Adam Ziada (gapsa.evp@gapsa.upenn.edu).
All questions and concerns shall be directed to the Chair.Eligibility
All PROFESSIONAL STUDENTS enrolled in a degree-granting program at Penn are members of GAPSA and are eligible to run for GAPSA positions. This includes full-time, part-time, online, remote, and dissertator students.
Location & Date
Huntsman Hall (JMHH) 360
February 18 at 6:00 p.m.Nomination
Nominations (self-nominations and nominations by others) may be submitted in advance by filling out the nomination form or made in person from the floor during the election.
All candidates must attend the election in person.Nominees submitted by others will be contacted by the Chair via email and must accept the nomination by email in advance or on the floor during the election.
Election Process
The election process is governed by the Constitution (Article IV, Section B).
Speeches: Candidates speak in alphabetical order by surname for 3 minutes each.
Q&A: Up to 15 minutes total. Each candidate has 1 minute per question; the first response rotates alphabetically. The first respondent receives an additional 30 seconds after all candidates have answered
Voting: The position is elected by eligible Council representatives (Constitution IV.B.2). Voting may be conducted either by consensus or by secret ballot. If a secret ballot is used, a majority determines the winner when there are two candidates; if there are three or more candidates, voting is conducted using the instant-runoff method.
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Chair of the Election
Incumbent Chair of IDEAL Student Council Meha Chauhan (gapsa.ideal@gapsa.upenn.edu).
All questions and concerns shall be directed to the Chair.Eligibility
All students enrolled in a degree-granting program at Penn are members of GAPSA and are eligible to run for GAPSA positions. This includes full-time, part-time, online, remote, and dissertator students.
Location & Date
ARCH 110
February 18 at 5:30 p.m.Nomination
Nominations (self-nominations and nominations by others) may be submitted in advance by filling out the nomination form or made in person from the floor during the election.
All candidates must attend the election in person.Nominees submitted by others will be contacted by the Chair via email and must accept the nomination by email in advance or on the floor during the election.
Election Process
The election process is governed by the Constitution (Article IV, Section B).
Speeches: Candidates speak in alphabetical order by surname for 3 minutes each.
Q&A: Up to 15 minutes total. Each candidate has 1 minute per question; the first response rotates alphabetically. The first respondent receives an additional 30 seconds after all candidates have answered
Voting: The position is elected by eligible Council representatives (Constitution IV.B.2). Voting will be conducted by secret ballot even if uncontested. With two candidates, a majority wins; with three or more, voting uses instant runoff.
Speaker
Incumbent: Stephen Lee (gapsa.speaker@gapsa.upenn.edu)
Chair of the Election
President Ludwig Zhao (gapsa.president@gapsa.upenn.edu).
All questions and concerns shall be directed to the Chair.
Eligibility
All graduate and professional students enrolled in a degree-granting program at Penn are members of GAPSA and are eligible to run for GAPSA positions. This includes full-time, part-time, online, remote, and dissertator students.
Location & Date
Huntsman Hall (JMHH) 360
April 15 at 7:00 p.m.
Nomination
Nominations (self-nominations and nominations by others) may be submitted in advance by filling out the nomination form or made in person from the floor during the election.
All candidates must attend the election in person.
Nominees submitted by others will be contacted by the Speaker via email and must accept the nomination by email in advance or on the floor during the election.
Election Process
The election process is governed by the Constitution (Article IV, Section A) and Executive Board Bylaws (Section 8).
Speeches: Candidates speak in alphabetical order by surname for 3 minutes each (Bylaws §8.2).
Q&A: Up to 30 minutes total. Each candidate has 1 minute per question; the first response rotates alphabetically. The first respondent receives an additional 30 seconds after all candidates have answered (Bylaws §8.3).
Voting: All positions are decided by secret ballot through the General Assembly voting members, even if uncontested. With two candidates, a majority wins; with three or more, voting uses instant runoff (Constitution IV.A.6).