With the election being over, some students believe America has voted the wrong candidate into office.
November 5 has left a giant question mark hanging in the air. Students who were too young to vote this year will be the voters of the future. While only a few students on campus were legally able to vote in the 2024 Presidential election, all students still have the ability to voice their concerns.
Prior to the election, students expressed their concerns about election results.
While the future isn’t set in stone, strong reactions from Americans leading up to and after the election have left some to consider whether the country is currently in a period of political turmoil. Before the election, students did not feel confident about its outcome.
“I honestly don’t feel great about [the election]. [I feel] pretty nervous. Each of the candidates have a lot of cons, some bigger than others,” Dutcher said.
Trump won the election with 312 electoral votes and Harris only had 226. Towards the end of election night Trump took swing states Georgia, North Carolina and Michigan, which put him in over 270.
“Kamala Harris losing the election felt like a shock — like, almost every election predictor said Kamala had higher chances of winning. The misery index, which is almost always correct, predicted she would win, and the margin she needed to win the swing states was easier to achieve than it would be for Trump,” senior Co-President of We the People Club, Tabitha Htoka said.
One of the biggest concerns from this election was the state of the economy. Inflation has been an issue since COVID-19, making it hard for families to afford necessities.
Social issues, such as women’s health and public education, have also been debated.
“But if Trump wins, this country would essentially become dictatorship-adjacent. Restricting (or even outright removing) women’s reproductive rights. Dismantling the public education system, banning non-issue standards like Critical Race Theory and gender ideology. Also removing protection against discrimination of LGBTQIA+ folk in the workplace is just wrong. Plain and simple,” Dutcher said.
Another important factor that played into this election was the current immigration policy. This was a topic that was debated very heavily in the Presidential Election. Trump believes that because of Kamala Harris’s border policy, the United States has become unsafe.
“Well, bad immigration is the worst thing that can happen to our economy. She has destroyed our country with [a] policy that’s insane. Almost the [type of] policy that you’d say they have to hate our country,” President-Elect Donald Trump said during his debate with Kamala Harris.
Weibel believes our tax dollars shouldn’t be going to people living in or entering the country illegally but to the homeless.
“Under the Biden-Harris administration, they gave these immigrants housing, as well as cash to get started. I believe instead of giving our tax dollars to people who illegally entered our country instead of using it to help homeless people get off the streets is a terrible thing,” Weibel said.
As the political landscape continues to evolve, many individuals are expressing hopes for a shift in values and leadership. Individuals such as Tabitha Htoka shared her vision for future elections.
“What I hope is that the Democrats will shift further to the left, and that people will vote with empathy in their hearts and concern for others. and of course I hope one day, that a woman will be president,” Htoka said.
