The Nexus compiled profiles of the 2025-26 Associated Students elected officials to reflect on their past year in office. As they look back on their campaign platforms, we asked our elected officials to tell us about their successes and shortfalls throughout their terms in office. The term in reviews for the other executives can be viewed at dailynexus.com and/or in our April 30, 2026 print edition.
The Associated Students External Vice President for Local Affairs E.J. Raad is nearing the end of his 2025-26 term, where he focused on preventing the Deltopia noise ordinance and addressing housing insecurity.
As the liaison between students and county stakeholders, Raad spoke on his experience working with the I.V. Foot Patrol. Sherine John / Daily Nexus
The External Vice President for Local Affairs (EVPLA) represents the UC Santa Barbara student body regarding Isla Vista affairs by addressing systemic issues such as the housing crisis and food insecurity. They also serve as the liaison between Associated Students (A.S.) and county organizations such as I.V. Community Services District (IVCSD) and the Santa Barbara County (SBC) Board of Supervisors.
Raad, a third-year political science major, ran on a platform of addressing housing issues and over-policing in I.V. Raad said he “feels good” about what he accomplished during his term, which included lobbying against the Deltopia ordinance, launching the Rate My Landlord website and distributing water filters to I.V. residents.
Since the launch of the Rate My Landlord website, which allows students to leave reviews on particular landlords and property managers, multiple landlords have been added to the website. Raad hopes the next EVPLA will continue to expand the website, since he considers it a “long-term project” that “builds up” over time.
Raad also expanded the outreach of the sexually transmitted infections (STI) “Screen-A-Thons” at the Pardall Center. Raad estimates they’ve serviced over 300 students throughout the year, on top of introducing the “Sight-A-Thon,” which offered free eye screenings along with a prescription.
Although Raad conceptualized providing dental care for students through the Pardall Center, he said the mobile clinics were “not easy” to work with. He said the earliest they’d be able to provide dental care was during finals week, which prevented his office from hosting the event. However, he hopes the next EVPLA can continue the project while further expanding health services to I.V. residents.
“I.V. just does not have readily available health services to be honest,” Raad said. “There isn’t really an eye doctor or a dentist or somewhere you can get STIs screened. So making those services available, I think it’s so important.”
Raad also ran on a platform of distributing free water filters to I.V. residents, which he distributed in winter quarter. According to Raad, his office has an incoming order of 200 water filters, which he hopes will be distributed to students in the following weeks. Raad said the filters will attach directly onto a faucet, opposed to the traditional “Brita style” filters they’ve given in the past.
In regards to the housing crisis, Raad promised during campaigning to install a lease pre-qualifier program, which would ease the process for UCSB students to sign up for off-campus housing. The program never came to fruition, with Raad explaining that it was “very difficult” to start. While he spoke to a few interested landlords, he struggled on communication with university administration.
During his term, Raad believes he’s brought more awareness around the housing crisis via his social media accounts. He’s made videos raising awareness towards I.V. landlord disputes, which he says allowed him to bring awareness towards housing issues “in a way that wasn’t done before” as EVPLA.
To assist in food insecurity, Raad wanted to hold a CalFresh enrollment fair, which didn’t pan out in part due to CalFresh funding being frozen last November. Additionally, the EVPLA office’s food security coordinator resigned during the year, which added difficulties. However, his office collaborated with the A.S. President for a variety of events, including the “dead week dinner distribution” food drive and outreach for free food at I.V. vendors with an EBT card.
As the liaison between students and county stakeholders, Raad spoke on his experience working with I.V. Foot Patrol (IVFP). Raad said that a “core understanding” for any EVPLA is that the role is “inherently juxtaposed” to IVFP, as “students very regularly clash with police interests.”
For Raad, the first time he met with former IVFP Lieutenant Joe Schmidt was regarding his proposed Deltopia ordinance, which started “a big source of contention” between them. Raad emphasized the importance of keeping a professional relationship in order to have productive conversations.
“[The EVPLA is] fighting for students to the police, but at the same time maintaining a cordial professional relationship, so that you can continue to actually have meetings and discussions about things,” Raad said.
According to Raad, he’s heard that University of California in Isla Vista (UCIV) and IVFP have been more “cordial and friendly” towards their A.S. representatives in the past year, which he attributes to the professional relationship they’ve built. Moving forward, Schmidt has been appointed commander, making Colby Carrell the new IVFP lieutenant, which Raad sees as a new opportunity for collaboration.
“I’ve spoken with Colby before, and I think he has that same capacity for collaborativeness, which will be good,” Raad said.
Following the passing of the Deltopia noise ordinance, which Raad spent the first half of his term lobbying against, he pivoted towards his other goals, such as launching Rate My Landlord and the Sight-A-Thon. Raad commended IVCSD for hosting the Deltopia alternative, Soltopia. However, he believes the festival was “really spread out” and criticized the long lines for food.
Raad suggested finding a way to host Soltopia on Del Playa drive, akin to Deltopia, as well as more food vendors with “divided time blocks” to avoid the long lines. Ultimately, he believes IVCSD did a “good job” with Soltopia.
“It’s the first time, it’s not going to be perfect the first time. So I think some of those improvements would help out and make it maybe better in future years,” Raad said.
At the end of his term, Raad believes he’s fulfilled his responsibility of fighting for student interest in I.V. through hosting various town halls and know your rights events. He cited that over 400 people attended his “Save Deltopia Town Hall,” and that he lobbied each of the five SBC Board of Supervisors. However, he expressed regret on not starting earlier on the lease pre-qualifier program, since the Deltopia noise ordinance “took up so much” of the office’s time.
As far as noticeable changes he’s seen within the EVPLA office, he said he made the role more “personalized” through his social media posts. Raad said the more personalized role gave him opportunities for better outreach, which he thinks makes “perfect sense” given he’s a representative of students.
With third-year economics and philosophy double major Noah Luken running unopposed as the next EVPLA, Raad believes there will be “less onboarding” for Luken compared to himself due to his pre-existing work with IVCSD. However, Raad plans on providing Luken and every other position within the EVPLA office with a transitional document. Raad advises Luken to spend “a lot of time” during the hiring process for his office, since he believes “you can’t do anything without a good team.”
Raad said his experience as EVPLA motivated him to run for A.S. President, due to his executive experience running an office and communicating with University administration. As of the publishing of this article, the 2026 Spring election remains ongoing. Raad hopes to continue the lease pre-qualifier program as president, where he believes he will have better access to University administration, as well as continuing his public-facing identity.
“I developed that public-facing side of things through a lot of social media stuff, and all these big events, and putting my face and name out there and stuff that I think is also really, really effective for a president to have,” Raad said.
A version of this article appeared on p. 3 of the April 30, 2026 print edition of the Daily Nexus
