The Editorial Board could not believe its collective eyes.
We got to the Orange & Brew, laptops in tow, Wednesday night at 9. We sat around for almost two full hours before we caught a glance or heard a peep from anyone at UF - much less members of either student party.
That all changed rather quickly.
Members and supporters of the Orange and Blue Party slowly but surely began to amass in the Brew's outside patio area. It seemed like the patio was empty one minute and the next it was overflowing with a horde of orange shirts.
At first they were relatively quiet - the whole gathering reeked of anticipation - then, with the arrival of a megaphone and Europe's "The Final Countdown," the lethargic gathering blossomed into a living, breathing, raving body of enthusiasm.
Following a mass exodus from the Swamp Restaurant - and a presumably enormous bar tab - the Gator Party soon followed suit. The Gator crowd was preceded by a roar. We're pretty sure we could hear them shouting the minute they left Swamp's gates.
They poured into the Brew as emphatically as their opponents, and with good reason. This Student Government election has seen greater voter turnout than any other - the largest turnout in UF's history.
Congratulations, UFers, you've made a huge contribution.
This is not something we've been able to say in the past. Typically, the student body is apathetic and lazy when it comes to SG, but not this time. This time we've seen (according to preliminary reports) an energized constituency.
Whether spurred on by the 2008 presidential election or the recent allegations of Gator Party conspiracy, we're still impressed. It's about damn time UF students made their voices heard.
Unfortunately, as a result of this huge turnout, the election results are going to be announced after the deadline for this editorial; meaning, this section of the paper won't tell you who and what the voters chose.
We regret that much because we would like to be able to throw in our 25 cents on the results. Two cents was never enough for us. What does 2 cents buy anyway?
Anyhow, the scene at the Orange and Brew escalated quickly, then died down, then re-erupted and so on. It was completely erratic. The excitement was palpable, but eventually the fatigue was, too.
The huge crowd standing around the Reitz Union Amphitheatre slowed to a crawl around 1 a.m., but it was obvious they weren't going there.
Even though their support had slowed from throaty screams and chants of "solidarity" to more quiet, reserved conversations, it was obvious their passion was still there.
The Gator Party remained quietly optimistic and mostly to themselves.
Orange and Blue, on the other hand, could hardly contain themselves. Even as they visibly bordered on dead tired, they couldn't help but smile.
They didn't even know the results of the election, but looking around we could tell they felt that they had accomplished something great.
Both parties' efforts this semester should be lauded, even if the record turnout was mostly because of scandal and the looming Obama-McCain face off.
Congratulations, Gators, you've done your part. There's nothing more either party could ask of you.
It looks like all the fliers, stickers and pestering have finally paid off.
