You'll struggle to find a room anywhere with an atmosphere as restless as the StaffsTV studio was on a Friday evening in early March. Months of preparation, campaigns and ambition boiled down to less than an hour; the apprehension felt by many of those sat in the audience was completely understandable.
It was, of course, the Leadership Race results show, held in Stafford for the last time before the big move later this year. Of the 50 or so people sat behind the cameras waiting for it to begin, four would become student trustees and four would be voted in as the new student officer team for 2016/17.
Hopeful candidates were joined in the studio by union staff, a few loyal supporters and the StaffsTV crew, who were rushing around to make the last few preparations before they went live. Camera-operators, presenters, directors all contributed generously to the anticipation in the room.
Once everyone was bustled into their seats it was just a case of waiting. We were reliably informed that the live audience was a decent improvement on last year's turn out, but only time would tell how many would watch the show as it was broadcast online. For now, that didn't matter.
The show itself was slick, concise, funny at times, tense at others and in the end four new trustees and four student officers had been revealed. Each of the new officers gave a giddy acceptance speech, full of nervous energy and the relief that could only follow a long few weeks of campaigning as well as an even longer hour of waiting to hear the results.
Naturally, there was disappointment for many in the room, but the consensus was that the four chosen had earned their victories.
Candidate Matt Dilworth remained upbeat after the show, telling us about the great experience he gained just from campaigning: "Running for student officer has been so much fun. It's something I'm definitely glad I've done.
"It's been incredibly nerve-racking, especially seeing all the other candidates waiting at the bar when we got here. Seeing everyone's faces looking a bit nervous. It's been a good show that's been put on and I think we've got some good candidates who've been chosen as well.
"It's my third year here, but I'm considering doing a Masters, so never say never, I could try again. I think I'd be a lot more prepared if I had to campaign again."
Conor Howard was another unlucky candidate who spoke to us once the cameras had stopped rolling: "Campaigning is a tough, tough process, but the whole experience was good.
"I met a lot of new people and the candidates that won were great, I can't complain there. They all worked really hard and they're deserving of the role."
Also sat amongst the crowd was Stuart Kosters who had come to support his girlfriend Kathryn Pogue in her ultimately successful bid to become student trustee.
He told us: "She's been working really hard for it, and it's something she wants to do. She's been a union rep for Stafford which means she's been helping a lot with the move to Stoke. I'm really happy for her."
Stuart was also one of the many who appreciated Staffs TV's efforts on the night, with the whole event being broadcast seamlessly.
Months of preparation and three whole days of rehearsals had accumulated to a relatively short, but complex show; there were several cameras to control, VTs to run, a virtual presentation, all fronted by presenters Luke Plevin and Lewis Warner.
Once the audience had begun to disperse, they explained how they felt it had gone.
"It's been quite intense, but it's been fun more than anything," Luke told us.
"Surprisingly I didn't feel nervous, although I normally would. I specialise in radio, but I thought I'd branch out a little bit and I didn't feel nervous at all."
Lewis added: "Hopefully, the event went smoothly. I mean we've been told everything was okay, we had some troubles in rehearsals with certain VTs not working, but it seemed to come together nicely in the end. Hopefully it went well and hopefully people enjoyed the show. We had a lot more interaction on Twitter than previous years, so it seems to have gone well."
The show was a great spectacle, fitting of the importance it held for a lot of people in the studio. Hopefully the student officer team will remember it as the beginning of a very successful time in office, where they can represent students and make Staffs a better place to live, study and work.
To view the winners of the Leadership Race 2016, go to www.staffsunion.com/leadershiprace.