On the rainy morning of May 5th, in the extremely professional recording studios of Radio Bocconi, I had the opportunity to have a small conversation with the three candidates running for the CNSU in next week elections. In this brief live interview, which Tra i Leoni realized in collaboration with Radio Bocconi, we explored the backgrounds and the stories of these three candidates, getting to know them better just before the electoral days, on the 14th and 15th of this month.
Carmine Nardelli, that is more widely known as Uccio, was born in the small town of Acquaviva delle Fonti, in the province of Bari. After having completed high school in the nearby Gioia del Colle, he moved to Milan to study in Bocconi University, enrolling in the Cleam course in 2021. Since then, he has graduated and joined the Master of Science in Marketing Management. When asked about the reason he chose to study here in our University, Uccio explained that he wanted to experience our challenging and inspiring environment. He described it as a place where the students’ voice matter and can be heard far and wide, something that helped Uccio being the best version of himself.
During this electoral season, Carmine has been on the most recognizable faces of Astra, certainly thanks to the hundreds of stickers and posters all around campus and to the heavy social media presence of his list. I wanted to know more of this aspect, his life as a student representative and as a leading candidate in Astra. Being chosen to run for such an important role like the CNSU made him feel appreciated, allowing Uccio to share his long experience with Bocconi students and with the entire community of Italian students.
As we did in the last interview for the Board of Directors’ candidates, we asked Uccio to describe himself with three words and to choose a song which could tell us something about this election. Carmine, with his usual smile, was more than ready to answer. Ambitious, as he pledges to never stop fighting for his dream; passionate, giving everything for what he believes in; determined, ready to defend his values and those that stand with him. And to perfectly summarize this whole picture, he asked for Don’t Stop Me Know, by the magnificent Queen. As we are listening to the song, his imposing figure relaxes for some minutes, looking out of the small window behind me. That room was incredibly warm, even in the cold Milanese morning, and all of us in there were sweating.
After the break we arrive to some technical questions, trying to explain to our listeners and our readers what the CNSU is and what role it plays in the governance of Italian universities. The National Council of University Students is directly in contact with the Ministry of University and Research, which allows for the voice of the 28 students’ representative to arrive to the Italian institutions. The members have the right to submit proposals to the minister and are called to act on behalf of all universities, not only the one where they come from.
Now everyone is thinking about the nationwide election coming up next week, but last month was totally dedicated to the internal competition between Astra and Blab, which peaked of course during the two electoral days, April 14th and 15th. Astra and Uccio were not completely satisfied with the final results, as the BOD position, the most important and prestigious of the elected posts, was won by Giulia Gambardella from Blab. After a moment of reflection, the list regrouped and consolidated on their achievements: two years at the helm and the next two with a considerable amount of representation in the University institutions are the baseline from which to rebuild. The whole group of representatives elected, whatever the color of their list, will work to improve the university and to make students’ voice stronger, Uccio is sure of this.
The difference between the list’s votes was, in the end, minimal. Blab collected 51.3% of the votes for the CDA, making the next election extremely uncertain and unpredictable. Will Astra turn the result around, swinging the necessary votes to gain the lead once more or will Alessandro D’Avino confirm last month’s victory for Blab? Or maybe we will see a last-minute surprise with our third and most unexpected candidate, Giovanni Bracci from the list Student Office Bocconi? Keep in mind that even a small number of votes moving from Blab to the new entry in university politics could be decisive in this tight race. In this unpredictable three-way race, all the candidates involved are working hard in these days before the election to catch your vote,
Uccio had some nice words for his main opponent, Alessandro D’Avino from Blab, that we interviewed shortly after. He called him tenacious, even though he said that he never had the chance to work with him directly. D’Avino’s role in the reconstruction of Blab after their 2023 defeat has been pivotal for this year’s result, according to Carmine. Showing respect for its opposition, smiling my way while talking.
On May 16th the election season here in Bocconi will be finally over, and consequences of the campaign, with all its promises and events, will unravel in front of those that will remain. Our university will not be the same after these two intense months of electoral competition, especially after the unprecedented level of participation and activism that we saw. Uccio confirmed that it has been a tiring period for everyone involved. So, tiring that he admitted that on the day after the election he would sleep as much as humanly possible, to recover his strength. In the months that are coming he pledges to continue his work as a representative, wherever and whenever he can. Staying with the students and hearing their voices is the key to being the best student representative possible.
This positive note ended my conversion with Carmine Nardelli, known as Uccio. He and Blab will be once more tested next week, when the final election of this year will take place. As he left the room, Alessandro D’Avino entered in his place, ready to continue with the interview program that Tra i Leoni and Radio Bocconi had prepared. Do not miss its interview and Giovanni Bracci’s one, always on Tra i Leoni website.
