Election Night: second term for Obama, significant firsts for United States history
Published: Wednesday, November 7, 2012
Updated: Monday, April 22, 2013 19:04
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While the passing of the DREAM Act is certainly new for Maryland as is the legalization of recreational marijuana for Washington and Colorado, the election of President Barack Obama is nothing new for the country.
In a historically close victory, Obama defeated Republican Presidential Nominee Mitt Romney by 100 Electoral College votes (303-203, according to Politico at the time of press printing) carrying key swing-states including Wisconsin, Iowa and New Hampshire to his advantage. Some states were still considered “too close to call” by the very early hours of the morning, but the race was officially declared a Democratic victory just before midnight.
Though the university seemed to remain quiet unlike the city of Chicago and other politically-charged cities throughout the country, some university students voiced strong opinions on an otherwise somewhat apathetic campus.
Junior Ashley Thomas, who describes herself as a libertarian voter, said she was not personally surprised by the results and thinks Romney isolated himself from women voters with comments about “how business should alter hours so women can basically go home to cook.”
Thomas said women’s issues played a major role in this election and the re-election of Obama was a victory for women and other groups as well.
“I think it’s a really big win for the LGBTQ community,” Thomas said.
Some members of the LGBTQ community found immediate victory in the election, including Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, who was the nation’s first openly-gay person to serve in the Senate. Others found victory in the states of Maine and Maryland, where gay marriage was legalized.
Additionally, 2013 will see a record high number of women in the Senate, which will maintain its Democratic majority. The House of Representatives will remain dominated by Republicans and Republican Vice Presidential Nominee Paul Ryan will keep his seat as a representative of Wisconsin, a position he has held since 1998.
Sophomore and President of College Republicans Elizabeth Catt said she was not shocked by the outcome and thought Romney conducted a “well-rounded campaign,” but missed out on an opportunity to appeal to college-aged voters.
“Mitt Romney’s campaign could have been more effective in targeting and energizing young voters,” Catt said.
Senior Justin Heanue agreed with Catt’s sentiments. He said as a Republican, he was not pleased with the election results and thinks that Romney did not do everything he could to win. He said Romney missed out on his presidential opportunity.
“Romney was winning most of the districts, but Obama was really hitting it home in the urban centers,” Heanue said. “More than ever in this election you really see a polarized, partisan electorate.”
Romney, who despite the controversy surrounding reports he only prepared a victory speech, delivered his concession at 12:55 a.m. and called for an end to partisan gridlocks.
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