By Daisy Ruiz
The presidential election of 2016 has come and gone. The outcome came as a surprise to many in the mainstream media, as most polls and pundits predicted former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton would win. But in a major upset, businessman, real estate developer and reality star Donald Trump beat out Clinton by winning the most electoral votes, while Clinton surpassed Trump in the popular vote by almost 2.9 million votes.
While Trump won more states overall, particularly less populated and rural states, Clinton’s wins were in states with large urban areas such as Illinois, California, and New York.
But in the end, Trump wound up the winner. In order to be named the next president of the United States, you need 270 electoral votes and Trump received 306 electoral votes while Clinton only got 236 votes.
So how did Indian Trail teens feel when they first found out who would be America’s newest president?
“I was surprised. I had more hope,” Gabby Viesca , a Communications senior said. Viesca was one of the students here at Indian Trail who went out and voted for Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson.
“I’m scared for the future. I’m scared for myself and for my future kids,” Alana Sims, another Communications senior said. Sims voted for Clinton.
But there was mixed reactions. While some are scared for the future of America, others were more hopeful.
“I’m very hopeful that Trump will make America great again,” said a Trump supporter who asked not to be identified.
A few students were indifferent to the outcome.
“I really didn’t care. I feel like he won’t do much in the first place,” said Quaid Nichols, a Communications senior who also voted for Libertarian Johnson.
Some say that the future will be something to be scared of. Many people fear that Trump could change a lot of things and others think that Trump won’t be able to change things without the backlash of the public or support of Congress.
“The country will have a lot of ups and downs during these four years but as a nation, we need to stand together,” said Xavier Parker, a Med-Sci senior who didn’t have the option to vote due to age.
“I think that the country is going to be run a lot more like a business. I believe Trump will help smaller businesses,” Nichols said.
There still is hope for the future.
“I hope that the economy will start getting better and hope that he gets more jobs for Americans,” Jenna Conforti, a Communications senior said.
“I hope to see more people coming together. I hope to see more people coming together instead of separating,” Sims said.
Donald Trump was inaugurated on Friday, Jan, 20th with his wife and kids present to see their father and husband sworn into office.