Andy Bock’s mood at his celebratory party started out in a jovial manner and even as the election results came in, his mood never changed.

Bock lost Ames’ 4th Ward to Riad Mahayni, 499 votes to 415 votes (vote count is unofficial) Tuesday night. His announcement of the loss was a congratulatory, resolute one.

“So I want to emphasize that I am proud of everybody in this room. I’m proud of everything that we, together, did,” Bock said, his voice tinged with joyful disappointment.

“And the spirit here has made the difference. I encourage all of us to stay involved at any capacity that we want to be in city politics and whatever politics there are. This was a challenge. We knew it from the beginning. But to get this close is, I think, is a major achievement.”

Bock’s supporters gathered at Cazador, 3605 Lincoln Way, to either join in Bock’s win or to console in his loss. As Bock announced the news there were a lot of groans and sighs in the crowd, but all cheered for their candidate and for the work that they had taken apart in.

“I, more than anything, feel pride in working together with people that have grown to mean a lot to me. Doing this as a part of a group, not as any one group, but a group that came around myself, as a candidate, for each of their own different reasons,” he said after the news had been given to him via a cell phone call.

The question now is what to do as a Ames citizen to enrich the community.

“I will be more active. I now have a lot of understanding of a broad section of people that I’ve had opportunities to meet with at their door. There are concerns, that I may not share, that are a part of the community, I think, from time to time need to be voiced,” he said, “and maybe not as a City Council member, but I’m committed to be a representative of people that may not be heard.”

Some supporters in attendance had voiced their opinions beforehand on how they would feel if Bock lost.

“I’d be disappointed, but I’d like to think that he’d run in the future,” said Mary Sawyer, of Ames.

Bock has lived in Ames since 1980 and is currently on staff at the Parks Library, where he is a library assistant.

He has served on a number of different committees, including the ISU Presidential Search Committee from 2000 to 2001, which brought the current ISU president, Gregory Geoffroy, to Ames. He also served on the University Committee on Women from 1997 to 1999.

He served on the East 13th Street Gateway Overlay District Committee for Ames in 2004. He was a board member of the Historic Old Town Neighborhood Association in 2005 and has served on the State of Iowa Negotiations Committee since 1996. He was also president of the American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees Local 96 ISU Clerical Employees from 1998 to 2001.

Bock said he wants to expand participation of issues of concern throughout the community. He is a strong believer that citizen participation is the key to a successful community. He supports “growth and development without sacrificing the quality of life we now enjoy.”