Kristen Arms

Columnist

If this election has taught the American people anything, it’s that expectations do not always equal reality. Senator Bernie Sanders seemed to have a large presence in the primaries but was uprooted by Secretary Hillary Clinton. This is largely because of the visibility of his supporters on social media, according to a May 5 New York Times article.

Clinton’s predicted victory in the media was overshadowed by the actual results of the election. President-elect Donald Trump won many of the swing states and was even a contender in a few of the states that tend to be liberal.

As much as some people despise Trump, college students especially, all is not lost for America. He is right in saying the economy is in need of drastic change, and although his policies are not ideal for fixing the problems he has brought up, plenty of people will advise him and think of alternative solutions, thanks to the checks and balances system in our government.

In the coming months, America is going to be subject to a Republican-dominated House of Representatives, Senate and Supreme Court. This means legislature could be passed more unanimously, leading the way for more frequent, uncontested policy change that has not been seen in previous years when the Senate has been more divided.

The United States has plenty of issues to fix, so perhaps a positive change will come from the majority of elected officials being one party.

Maddie Steen

Columnist

I am not very surprised about how the election turned out. I’m more surprised with the extremely harsh ways people have reacted.

After everything Secretary Hillary Clinton has gotten away with, I figured she could pay off the electoral college voters and gain the win by pulling some strings.

Clinton won the popular vote, but President-elect Donald Trump won the presidency with 279 electoral votes, according to the Associated Press election polls.

The fact that Trump won, however, was still not a surprise. While I don’t agree with the two candidates at all, it is what it is, and people need to accept it or create a change instead of letting him dictate the country.

People reacted in an absolutely appalling and hateful way. I did not vote because I would have felt morally wrong in doing so. On Facebook, I directed my support toward a third party candidate so in the future a third party would have a better chance at winning the election.

By not voting for the two major parties, I was attacked by many saying it is people like me who are at fault for Clinton’s loss. Just because I did not vote for her meant I was pro-Trump and racist, homophobic, sexist and whatever else they could think of.

We need an engaged generation at this time, not a split one. We need to empower one another and stand together instead of tear each other down. Solidarity is key here.

Brooklynn Harper

Columnist

The results of this presidential election shocked me, to say the very least. We had two less than favorable choices, and either way, America would have lost.

The New York Times predicted a victory for Secretary Hillary Clinton on Tuesday, saying there was about an 85 percent chance she would win.

My heart aches for those groups in fear of President-elect Donald Trump including women, the LGBTQ community, blacks, Hispanics and Muslims. I’m sorry this election has worked against those groups’ fight for basic human rights.

We rid ourselves of a corrupt candidate, but we elected a prejudiced bully. Our last hope, our third party candidates, lost by a landslide. New Mexico Governor Gary Johnson received just 3 percent of the popular vote, and activist Jill Stein received 1 percent, according to the Associated Press.

Even more frightening, many people voted for Harambe, the gorilla shot dead at the Cincinnati Zoo more than six months ago, according to a Tuesday Huffington Post article. Harambe was just ahead of Stein this election, and Shrek, the Dreamworks character, trailed right behind her, according to the article. A vote for a gorilla is not a joke, it’s a vote wasted.

Clinton lost the election, and America went down with her. Though Trump considers this a great victory, I consider the results of this election, and even of the primary elections this spring, a sad, pathetic loss for our country.

Ian Tancun

Columnist

I am disgusted by the election results. While I respect democracy, and the role voters have in electing our leaders, I’m completely dumbfounded by this outcome. My disdain with the election results has nothing to do with political parties.

President-elect Donald Trump is a misogynist, a racist, a xenophobe and a deplorable human being, based on comments he’s made in the past year. I am ashamed to be an American because more than 45 million U.S. citizens observed everything he has said and done throughout this campaign and decided he is best suited to represent our country on a world stage.

As a member of the LGBT community, I’m concerned marriage equality might soon disappear. With Trump’s win and other victories in the Senate, Republicans control two branches of our government: the Executive and Legislative branches, according to CNN.

As president, Trump will fill the void on the Supreme Court, which will then give Republicans and conservatives control of all three branches of government. Marriage equality and women’s reproductive rights are at risk.

With this election result, it’s hard not to lose faith in humanity. As a minority, I was appalled by Trump’s rhetoric this entire campaign. Yet, more than 45 million people heard the same things I heard and rewarded him with the presidency. That fact might be more disturbing than the nightmare that is his victory.