Were we blinded by the abundance of ‘I’m With Her’ statuses around us?

The professionals got it so wrong

Today some Americans are waking up satisfied and some in disbelief. Hillary was indeed going against the tides of history. It is rare for the same party to be elected into a third term, especially after a financial crisis and ongoing wars. She was also going against the norm because she was the first female candidate nominated by a major political party. She was going against the tide because, despite these unusual things, she was winning. She was wining by a lot… or so we thought.

Trump was an out of the ordinary candidate as well. He stood out as an nontraditional republican candidate. He spoke unlike other politicians, without all the political jargon, which some found refreshing. He promised grandiose agreements in exchange for a vote which appealed to many. Additionally, he exploited his experience as a business man to appeal to the working class. I believe this man is untrustworthy, and saw his race to the White House as a manipulative game.

There is a quote from Donald Trump circulating the internet this morning, from 1998. 18 years is a long time and I agree that people change. However, the foreshadowing is eerie. “If I were to run, I’d run as a Republican. They’re the dumbest group of voters in the country. They believe anything on Fox News. I could lie and they’d still eat it up. I bet my numbers would be terrific.” This, my fellow Buffs, is no coincidence.

Boulder county, like usual, went blue. Only about 22% voted for Trump while 71% opted for Hillary. Gary Johnson won 4% of our votes and Jill Stein, almost 2%. Almost all other third party candidates won a handful of Boulderites’ hearts, with only four presidential candidates receiving zero support.

Living in Boulder it was easy to be fooled by the abundance of “I’M WITH HER” bumper stickers and other forms of democratic support. As a Boulder resident, I am not oblivious to the fact that we live in an area that traditionally votes democratic. I am aware other parts of the country, and state even, were carrying around many more red advertisements. However, the polls falsely reassured those like me living in blue areas that Hillary would win dispite large support for Trump.

Annie of CU Boulder expresses her thoughts about today’s historic news

How did the entire nation’s polling get this systematically wrong?

Polling surveys were reporting numbers before the election that favored Hillary. It is easy to get annoyed at this fact, like someone promised something, but were lying the whole time. I am not mad, but I want to know why the entire system was wrong to such a large extent. Were people scared to say they were supporting Trump, and therefore didn’t tell pollsters? Did the last minute letter to Congress from the FBI change the minds of undecided voters?

The votes of Buffs and fellow community members were not wasted. Hillary Clinton actually won the popular vote in this historic 2016 election. This makes her the fifth presidential candidate in history to win the popular vote and lose in electoral votes. The latest count is that she won by over 160,000 votes (although, four states at this time have not finished counting). This, unlike the polling mistakes, enrages me. There are many things wrong with our political system, and some are unavoidable. This, however, is avoidable, yet we continue to tolerate it.

Lindsey, a CU Buff

Indeed I am disappointed in the decisions that Americans made yesterday. I find it absolutely baffling that we chose a candidate who was endorsed by the Ku Klux Klan. A republican president is not the issue I am focused on today. The issue is the man: Donald Trump. A man who has been accused of sexually assaulting women and who has openly racist views. Yes, America. Your first black president will hand over the Oval Office to an openly racist businessman who has zero political experience. I worry for our people. I didn’t sleep last night.

However, I know we are not doomed. I am thankful we have a system in which there is a peaceful transition of power. I am happy we are given the option as to who leads us – a right that’s not available to all people in the world. Now, it should not be our intention to take this man down, instead we need to focus on reuniting the country after a year of insults, skepticism and divisiveness. This historic day should not drive us further apart, but give us the motivation to collaborate. This change of rhetoric will present a bigger challenge to conquer racism and sexism, but we can still move in that direction with full force and intention to break down walls. So, give someone a hug today and get more informed in 2017.

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