Courtesy of Davi Schulman
The sun rose above the Thames River as usual on Wednesday, November 6. However, something was different that day– with the sun emerged Donald Trump as the forty-seventh president of the United States. Following a long night of rolling election results, Trump secured 277 electoral votes, surpassing the necessary 270, while his democratic opponent Vice President Kamala Harris won 224. All eyes were on the battleground states of Georgia, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin, which Trump flipped in this historic election. He later won the swing states of Michigan, Arizona, and Nevada, which had not finished counting their votes by Wednesday morning. All of these states voted blue for Joe Biden in the previous 2020 presidential election. On January 20, Trump will be officially inaugurated for his second presidential term.
For nearly all students at Connecticut College, this was the first presidential election in which they were old enough to vote. Young voters under age 30 have historically been critical to presidential election results. While Biden swept the votes of many young people in 2020, this year, more young voters swung toward Trump, especially in battleground states (NPR). Some criticized the pre-election polls for overestimating the closeness of the presidential race. According to a POLITICO article, “All across the battlegrounds, in the Rust Belt and Sun Belt both, tied races in pre-election polls turned into decisive Trump victories or sizable Trump leads as the votes were tallied.”
Harris won Connecticut’s seven electoral votes, maintaining the state’s consistent blue status. Democratic incumbent Chris Murphy was re-elected as senator, and the democratic incumbents who ran for congress in each of Connecticut’s five districts were all re-elected. This included Joe Courtney, the representative for the 2nd district of Connecticut, which includes New London, who debated his republican opponent Mike France on Conn’s campus.
“I’m having a hard time understanding why,” said Lily Sutton ‘28. Students gathered in community spaces on campus, like the LGBTQ+ Center and the Disability Cultural Center (DCC), to decompress and process the election results. Eliza Bowe ‘28, sitting on the DCC couch next to Sutton, expressed her frustration that a man who was impeached and convicted won the election over a “qualified woman.” Bowe felt “angry with how underrepresented women are” in the White House.
Harris attempted to make the most of her 100 days to campaign after Biden dropped out of the presidential race. She took to social media, specifically TikTok, to reach Gen Z voters. Her platform promised economic support for lower and middle class families, more accessible healthcare, combatting the climate crisis, protection of reproductive rights, and stricter gun laws, among other humanitarian issues. “I think the results of this election hurt so much because of the good that I saw,” said Delaney Brenner ‘26. “The joy that was present in all the videos I watched of Kamala Harris. The protections of our rights and bodily autonomy that she offered. A break from the fear mongering and ignorance.”
Trump’s proposals include tax cuts for the wealthy, implementation of a universal tariff on imported goods, termination of the war in Ukraine, mass immigrant deportation, funding cuts for public education (specifically schools that teach “Critical Race Theory”), stricter abortion laws, repeal of the Affordable Care Act, and more. Project 2025 is the Trump administration’s blueprint for the next four years. Ian Ross ‘25 wrote, “I fear for all those I care about; Project 2025 is a death sentence to millions.”
The extent to which Trump’s campaign rhetoric will translate into policy is still unclear. The Chronicle of Higher Education commented on the possible threat to international students at US institutions: “Even though during his first term Trump never followed through on threats to limit visas for international students or curtail their ability to work here after graduation, the number of first-time international students tumbled 11 percent.” There is no way of knowing whether or not Conn will see a decrease in future international student enrollment.
“My heart sinks deep into my chest thinking about all the people in this country who will now live in even more fear– for their safety, for their security, for their livelihoods,” said Natalia Hall ‘25. Students who belong to marginalized groups have the potential to be most impacted by Trump’s presidency. Trump has made clear his views on transgender people, promising to “keep men out of women’s sports,” continue bans on gender-affirming care, and cut funding for schools that “indoctrinate” students with “radical gender ideology” (Time Magazine). He also plans to further restrict access to abortion. “I am heartbroken for myself and for everyone else whose rights will be violated by [Trump’s presidency],” expressed Caroline Snyder ‘26. Deemed Connecticut’s most LGBTQ-friendly campus, Conn prides itself on inclusivity. While Conn is a private institution, national threats to LGBTQ+ rights and DEI initiatives in general may pose compromises to students’ safety and mental health.
“I feel like I have been roughly thrust into the light, but it isn’t a happy one; this light uncovered an ugly truth about the world I live in,” said Brenner. “Even though little girls continue to be told they can be anything they want to be, we just showed them that they cannot be president of the United States, especially if they are not white.” Harris made history as the first woman vice president, but she fell short in her fight to become president. In a speech at the 2024 Democratic National Convention, Hillary Clinton expressed her hope that Harris would “finally break the ‘highest, hardest glass ceiling’ in America by becoming the first female president” (BBC). Debates continue about whether America will ever be ready for a woman president.
Educational Studies Professor Karen Pezzetti commented, “This election has just made the amount of greed, racism, xenophobia, transphobia, and misogyny that already existed more obvious. We– white people especially– need to face the reality of the enormous amount of work to be done.” Owyn Ledina ‘25 feels similarly motivated by the work ahead. Their new mantra is “different work now”; in other words, while there was always work to do for the betterment of the US, Trump’s presidency requires a distinct type of work. “I want nothing more than to educate myself further and to get more involved,” wrote Hall. “I want to invest my time, my energy, my voice into constructing a safe, equitable, and just future.”
President of the College Andrea Chapdelaine stated, “It’s important that people remain interested and educated…I will continue to be a fierce advocate for higher education, especially private higher education, and our students.” Harris gave her concession speech with a big smile on her face, declaring, “My heart is full today…full of love for our country.” She emphasized the importance of continued faith in democracy. “The light of America’s promise will always burn bright as long as we never give up and as long as we keep fighting,” said Harris.
While this election did not result in the first woman president, it did result in other firsts. Sarah McBride from Delaware will be the first openly transgender person in congress and Andy Kim from New Jersey the first Korean American senator. Out of the ten states with reproductive rights on the ballot, seven approved abortion rights protection (Missouri lifted its full ban on abortion). Republicans took control of the senate, but the race for the House of Representatives is still close as of Nov. 10.
Conn students are resilient and unafraid to speak out against injustice. This historic election may cause waves of uncertainty in the Conn community and beyond, but Conn will maintain its values of diversity, equity, and shared governance. Hall concluded, “An observation I have that I hope holds true: it is but in the wake of tragedy, of hardship, strife, and unrest, that the most beautiful movements ignite.”
