Trump Wins 47th Presidential Election

Naomi Herthel

After two years of campaigning, a last-minute change in Democratic nominees from President Joe Biden to Vice President Kamala Harris, and a rattling assassination attempt of Donald Trump, the race for the 47th presidential election finally took place on Tuesday, Nov. 5th. With the entire nation and much of the world watching, and in spite of his 34 felony convictions in a New York courtroom, Trump was declared victorious, winning not only the electoral college but also the popular vote. He will be inaugurated Jan. 20, for his second and final term in office. 

The majority of the US’s 50 states are either predictably “blue” (Democratic) or “red” (Republican). California, for example, is a blue state: since it tends to vote for the Democrat time and time again, Vice President Harris could safely count on receiving all 54 of California’s electoral votes. But even if Trump and Harris each received all of the electoral votes from the historically red and blue states respectively, that would not bring either candidate to 270 electoral votes, the magic number that is needed to win. This means this election came down to the country’s “swing states,” states that don’t always side with one party over another and, therefore, have electoral votes up for grabs. For this recent election, the critical swing states were Michigan, Wisconsin, Nevada, Arizona, North Carolina, Georgia, and Pennsylvania. Both parties understood that these seven states would determine the outcome of the election, and so they spent most of their time campaigning in those states. 

Throughout the weeks leading up to the election, many polls suggested that Trump and Harris were so neck-and-neck in swing states that it could take days or even weeks for the winner to be announced. However, to the surprise of many, Trump was declared the winner on election night after sweeping North Carolina, then Georgia, then Pennsylvania, and soon after, each of the remaining swing states. 

Trump supporters across the nation look forward to the return of a president who vows to “Make America Great Again” by promising to seal the border, lower inflation, create jobs for Americans and prevent future world wars. Conversely, for many Harris supporters, especially female supporters who were hopeful of electing America’s first woman president, this news was devastating. Harris had vowed to protect abortion rights and reproductive freedom, build up the middle class by creating an “opportunity economy,” provide financial incentives for first-time home buyers and small businesses, and offer “a seat at the table” to all American citizens, regardless of differences in gender, race, sexual orientation or political beliefs. 

Though perhaps the most important, the presidential election is one of many that occurred on Nov. 5. Some other significant outcomes include: the Republican party regained control of the Senate, Democrat Sarah McBride was elected to be the first openly transgender member of Congress, and Florida’s six-week abortion ban was narrowly voted to remain intact. 

Be sure to review multiple news sources for a more extensive recount of the election outcomes (as of this writing, some races are still too close to call!) and the impact these results could have on our country’s future.