Voters marked their ballots overwhelmingly in favor of Democrats in races for university governance across the state Tuesday.

And with the football head coach leaving MSU, voters put a former head coach back at the university — this time in the board room.

Democratic candidates George Perles, MSU football head coach from 1983-1994, and Faylene Owen took the two open seats on the MSU Board of Trustees from Republican incumbents David Porteous and Dee Cook.

Porteous was elected to the board in 1998 and served as board chairman. Cook served on the board for 16 years.

The Democratic board candidates also seemed popular with students, securing a majority of the votes in every precinct on campus and in areas with large student populations.

The balance on the board now shifts away from Republicans, with five Democrats and only three Republicans on staff.

The board makes most major decisions for the university, including hiring the replacement for current head coach John L. Smith, setting tuition rates and deciding policies such as the campuswide open-alcohol ban.

The eight board members serve eight-year terms and are not paid by the university.

Democrats also swept the election for University of Michigan Board of Regents and Wayne State University Board of Governors — removing one Republican incumbent from each board.

"It's always disappointing when you lose, but it's been an incredible eight years," Porteous said.

Porteous said he stayed up until almost 2:30 a.m. on Wednesday waiting for election results, but the winners had been "pretty clear" early Tuesday evening with most Democrats leading.

"The margins at the top of the ticket were really landslides, so if you observe these elections, it gives a good sense of what will happen in the board seats," Porteous said. "I wasn't surprised when the final results were in."

Messages left at Cook's Greenville home were not returned Wednesday night.

The end of the election relieved tension for Perles, who said he's looking forward to working on the board.

"I'm thankful people have confidence in me, and it's an honor," he said. "I want to make sure I can live up to it."

Even with more than a decade of experience with the athletics program, Perles said he doesn't plan to make it a priority above other issues on the board's agenda.

"The only time I'll be involved in athletics is if someone asks my opinion," he said. "I'm not going to get my nose in their business."

Owen also said she's anxious to start working on the board.

"I hope to persuade the Legislature to invest in our university to contain tuition costs and preserve the quality of MSU," Owen said.

The newly elected trustees will cause a major shift on the board, said Eric Hinojosa, ASMSU's Academic Assembly chairperson who also acts as a student liaison to the board.

ASMSU is MSU's undergraduate student government.

"Cook and Porteous have been around for awhile and held a lot of institutional memories, so it's going to be an adjustment," Hinojosa said.

Remaining board members say they're sad to see two members leave but will welcome the new trustees.

"It truly is a loss," Trustee Don Nugent said. "But we suspect the trustees-elect will be very positive contributors as well."

Trustee Dorothy Gonzales said new board members could help bring different perspectives on issues the board is facing.

"When you have new people, you get new ideas on how MSU can be better, and we've always had a good board," Gonzales said.

Holly Klaft can be reached at klafthol@msu.edu.