The votes are in, and we can conclusively say that apathy has carried the day.

Tuesday’s special election to shorten City Council term lengths from four years to two years failed by a margin of 17 percent. Of the total 3, 956 votes — representing 8.5 percent of eligible voters — only 41.5 percent were in favor of two-year terms.

Given the low turnout and especially the wide margin, we question how effective two-year terms would have been in promoting political representation in Ames. Although we supported the initiative and wish the vote had worked out differently, we can’t dispute the results. The voters — and more importantly, the non-voters — spoke clearly, and their message was apparently that, unless something changes, apathy will prevent the election of a student to City Council, no matter how long terms are.

Tuesday’s vote was general in nature; it did not even put a student on the ballot. It was a vote that could not be perceived as a threat to non-student residents, as actually running a student candidate could have been. Moreover, there were good reasons even for long-term residents to vote in favor of two-year terms. We can only guess that these residents did not see it that way.

As for students, we would like to think the externalities of Tuesday’s vote — a special election in the middle of April foisted on a voting population burned out after intense national and university elections — contributed to low turnout. Perhaps if a student candidate were to run next November — and those who are capable and interested are out there — the student body would be more responsive. But judging from the November 2003 election, when student candidates Matt Denner and Nathan Johnston ceded defeat before Election Day, we are doubtful, and can’t help but wonder what must be done to turn students into city leaders.

But the immediate question is, how will Ames move forward toward the “One Community” concept that long- and short-term residents alike claim to value? There are no easy answers when students are viewed with hostility by local government but lock themselves out of the political process by refusing to vote. After this latest failed attempt, it seems the activists pursuing the goal of student representation should first strive to motivate their peers and only then turn their attention to changing the city’s power balance.

For those activists who have worked tirelessly to motivate the apathetic, we invoke Thomas Edison, who said, “I haven’t failed; I’ve found 10,000 ways that don’t work.”

Don’t give up — you’re fighting the good fight.