The United Students coalition at Kansas University won Student Senate elections this week with 51 percent of the vote.

And the new student government leaders – Hannah Love, Dodge City junior, president, and Ray Wittlinger, Olathe junior, vice president – say there’s a lot of work to be done.

“I’m still in shock right now,” Love said Friday. “It’s kind of like a dream, but I know come Monday morning we’ve got to buckle down and get things going.”

Students also passed two referendums: a $1.50 renewable energy and sustainability fee that would come from student fees, and a $4 fee increase that would provide bus routes during the evenings and weekends to and from downtown Lawrence.

A $2 fee to provide events during homecoming week was rejected.

The United Students coalition also won all 14 freshman/sophomore College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Senate seats.

Delta Force coalition claimed 40 percent of the votes for president and vice president, but won 13 of 14 junior/senior CLAS seats.

“We are absolutely thrilled about the election,” said Liz Stuewe, vice presidential candidate for Delta Force. It’s always sad when you don’t win the presidential or vice presidential seats, but we now have a majority in Senate.”

She and running mate John Cross, Kansas City, Mo., junior, will use their majority representation to help pass their main referendum issue: subsidized testing of sexually transmitted disease and infection at Watkins Health Center.

Johnathan Wilson, Paola sophomore, ran for president on the Students Rights coalition.

“Students Rights platform issues were created for student by students,” he said. “I asked them what the three biggest issues were on campus, and I felt like our platform issues were important.”

With that information, he and vice presidential nominee Caitlin Ballard, Overland Park junior, set a platform to create a textbook rental program and decrease tuition rates.

Wilson’s reaction after the election was more of a concern of voter turnout than of losing.

“I just don’t think people care about Student Senate, I don’t think they know how important it is,” he said.