Students vote to disaffiliate from NUS

The results of the referendum, in which students also voted that the SU should actively campaign for divestment, were announced on Thursday

The referendum represented the first time since 2016 that Cambridge students have voted on the question of disaffiliation, with the previous move to disaffiliate being rejected by a margin of 57% to 42%Faris Qureshi for Varsity

by Faron Smith

Friday October 31 2025, 3:55pm

Cambridge students have voted by a margin of nearly 500 votes to disaffiliate from the National Union of Students, following a University-wide referendum.

Meanwhile, the second question on the ballot – asking whether the SU should campaign to end university investments and collaborations with arms manufacturers – easily passed with over 3000 votes in favour compared to just 615 against.

The vote was announced earlier in October (17/10) by the SU, and voting was open from the 27th to 30th October, requiring 2000 students to vote in order for quorum to be reached.

Turnout has been a persistent issue in SU elections and referendums, with February’s elections seeing a turnout of 19% – a significant increase of the 10% reached in the previous two years. Overall, 3775 students voted on the disaffiliation question, and 4023 voted on divestment.

The pro-disaffiliation campaign was spearheaded by Cambridge for Palestine (C4P), who, in an Instagram post on Monday (27/10), claimed that NUS UK had “failed Cambridge”. In a later post, C4P called for students to vote to disaffiliate from the “pro-zionist, islamophobic” NUS.

Meanwhile, Cambridge University Labour Club (CULC) was among the student groups calling for a vote to remain within the NUS, highlighting achievements of the NUS such as “campaigning to save the graduate route visa or defending trans rights”.

SU referendums heat up as campaigners claim intervention

The referendum represented the first time since 2016 that Cambridge students have voted on the question of disaffiliation, with the previous move to disaffiliate being rejected by a margin of 57% to 42%.

In response to the vote to disaffiliate, Amira Campbell, NUS UK National President said: “NUS UK represents over 4.5 million students from over 400 Universities and Colleges who all benefit from our collective work and action. We know that the student voice is stronger and louder together, so we are disappointed that Cambridge SU have voted to leave, but will continue to campaign with students on the issues they are facing – from the cost of living, the Graduate Route Visa and tuition fees. Cambridge SU will always be welcomed back into NUS UK and we hope to see them rejoin soon.”

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