Senior Matthew Wisnefske paced in and out of the Student Senate office Thursday night in eager anticipation of the results to last week’s Student Senate elections.

He peered into the office the vote counters occupied and gave them a good-natured heckling on a couple of occasions.

Wisnefske and 15 other students awaited the posting of the results to see who will have positions in the upcoming Senate session.

Senators and potential senators tightly crossed their arms, bit their lips and shifted their weight from one foot to the other.

At 6:30 p.m., a half hour past the expected time the results were to be posted, the vote counters emerged.

Senior Chad Wade and junior Meredith Marx went from candidates to president- and vice president-elect.

A messenger delivered the news to Wade and Marx; they were trying to ease the tension by watching the 6 p.m. news in a TV lounge.

Senior Bob Bourgeois was the only presidential candidate to be seen near the Senate office. His running mate, junior Lindsey Nelson, was in class.

Presidential candidate senior Scott Olson attended a conference in Madison at the time and his running mate, junior Dawn Snyder, passed the time by filing through applications for a meeting she had to attend at 7 p.m.

Only about 12 percent of all students voted in the election, Wade said, but this was an increase compared to other elections.

“Maybe we’re making a trend for more student voting,” Wade said.

This year’s turnout of 1,231 votes fell short of last year’s 1,824 votes. However, a referendum for the approval of $36.1 million for a new student center and membership in United Council might have driven up the 2003 turnout. In 2002, the last year without any referendums on the ballot, drew only 929 voters to the polls.

The finale of the election came as a relief to the candidates.

“It’s been a long two weeks,” Wade said, his face a deep red after seeing the results.

Snyder, an RA in Oak Ridge Hall, said she was satisfied at how the election turned out because now she will have more time to spend with residents on her wing. She said she still wants to stay involved in Senate, preferably as the director of a commission if she gets appointed.

Nelson said she’s proud her ticket held it’s own and came only 61 votes from winning the election. She and Bourgeois are considering applying for directorships or senator seats if they are available, she said.

“We’re going to make some attempt to be involved in Senate,” she said.

Wade said the next three weeks will contain meetings with the administration and accepting applications for commission directorships.

“(Outgoing president and vice president) Adrian (Klenz) and Kate (Demerse) showed a presidency is only as good as its directors,” said Wade, the former finance commission director.

New Senators will begin their terms at 6 p.m. tonight at the regular Senate meeting in the Tamarack Room in Davies Center.