The voting polls for this year’s presidential election came to a close on Tuesday. The Associated Press reported former President Donald Trump had been re-elected as the 47th President of the United States on Nov. 6.
Trump will enter his second presidential term after serving from 2016 to 2020. He won the Electoral College with 277 electoral votes compared to Kamala Harris’ 224. Trump also won the popular vote with 71 million compared to Harris’ 66 million. In Florida, Trump won the 30 electoral votes with 56.1% of voters’ support.
The general sentiment among Florida Atlantic’s students who were interviewed had mixed reactions to the results of the election. For Lucas Minguez, a freshman majoring in criminal justice, the shock factor came from the electoral and popular votes gap between the two candidates.
“Trump kind of won by a landslide. He did a lot better than I thought he would…I hope he’s a good leader,” Minguez said. “I hope he does better than he did last time, but other than that I guess I was a little shocked. I just thought that Kamala would do a little bit better.”
Daskia Jeanty, a junior finance major, said she expects Trump to help with the level of inflation in the state of Florida. As a student herself, Jeanty feels that college students care about being able to afford groceries over societal problems.
“I wasn’t too surprised that people decided to vote for Trump more because people don’t care about the social problems because we have bigger issues to fry as in inflation, economic prices and stuff like that,” said Jeanty.
Jeanty comes from a line of business owners. She said Trump has helped her family succeed more, while Harris has focused on individuals’ outcomes, which has made her begin to lean towards his policies.
For others, the economic situation isn’t the primary concern.
Natalia Bonar, who graduated with a major in neuroscience and is trying to go for her graduate degree at FAU, expressed her concern for the healthcare system in the U.S. She intends to become a doctor and wants everyone to “get the care they need” and hopes that Trump’s legislation pushes for those topics.
“I did vote for Harris, but again, if Trump actually pushes for that kind of legislation that supports women then I really don’t mind at all,” Bonar said.
The UP also posted an online poll on Instagram asking students, “What are your thoughts on the election results?” Kalela Leonard, a freshman majoring in political science and sociology, responded to the poll with her concerns.
“It’s extremely discouraging as a Black woman. Trump can run against a man and lose but run against a woman and win,” wrote Leonard in a direct message to the UP.
Megan Bruinsma is the Sports Editor for the University Press. For more information regarding this or other stories email her at [email protected] or DM her on Instagram @megan_bruinsma or Twitter (X) @MeganBruinsma.
