I was excited to write my final debate analysis on the Greek Row debate, held Monday night in the James Fletcher Building.

I had hopes for a house packed with fraternity and sorority members eager to watch the candidates duke it out in what was going to be a real debate — with rebuttals this time.

If you haven’t caught on to my disappointment by now, here it is — there were, at most, 35 people at the debate. Half were FUSE Party members and half were FUSE presidential and vice presidential candidates Spencer Pearson and Basim Motiwala’s fraternity brothers from Sigma Chi. The two are basically the same thing.

I mean, I thought the Forward Party would have it tough because of the home court advantage FUSE would have in a greek crowd, but wow! Forward had literally zero chance of swaying votes in front of this “crowd.”

In reality, this column was meant to inform those not attending about what happened in the debates this year. I wrote about who slammed whom, who was too goofy, who was perfect and who looked like he or she would win. This is a different column because no one was goofy and no one was perfect. No one was there.

The debate was, at its very core, a completely useless waste of the time people spent at it. No one said anything new or revolutionary, and at this point, I doubt that there is anyone who doesn’t know whom he or she will vote for.

It is no secret that only a speck of the nearly 30,000 students on this campus votes, and those who do basically pick a party — preferably one that their friends are in — and stick with that party.

I guess that’s what we get when $21.40 a semester isn’t enough to coax one from Associated Students of the University of Utah apathy — it’s not even enough money to buy two movie tickets and some popcorn.

It’s because of these reasons that ASUU will be the same next year as it was the year before, and as it will always be as long as the voting trends and interest in it stay as they are now.

Optimists and idealists root for the More 4 Us and Ninja Ks of our campus, but optimistic thoughts and underground parties aren’t enough to reckon with the forces of apathy and popularity working against them.

As someone who spent two years working at ASUU, I see the bad and good in this trend. Continuity can be positive because it allows for progression in implemented ideas. However, when the same continuity dissuades people from involving themselves by making it impossible for them to keep up with the pack, the students with fresh ideas and drive will rarely be incorporated.

The day this will turn around is the day more than 5,000 students vote in ASUU elections.

For now, the polls for final elections are open and close Wednesday at 10 p.m. I could tell you who will win the elections, but I won’t because you’re all smart enough to already know. They will do a good job.