Chatter filled the halls the day after the election. Students shared their mixed opinions with each other, some showed their patriotic spirit by wearing American flags and teachers offered support for anyone who needed to talk.
Donald Trump was announced the winner of the 2024 presidential election on Nov. 6. He beat his opponent Vice President Kamala Harris by securing 312 electoral votes out of 538 total electoral votes. Trump campaigned on topics such as immigration and the economy. In Woodside’s mock election, around 61% voted for Kamala Harris and 31% voted for Donald Trump.
“I was very sad about what happened,” sophomore Mateus Bassi said. “I don’t think Trump was a good choice for everyone [and] neither was [Kamala Harris]. They were both bad options, but I think Trump was a worse [option] than she was.”
Kamala Harris’s campaign highlighted women’s rights and empowerment. Some campaign speakers included Beyonce, Oprah and former first lady Michelle Obama. Issues like women’s rights and abortion rights were key talking points at her rallies.
“I feel like I was hoping our country was ready for a strong, powerful woman to be president, someone who wanted change for the country and wanted [it] to move in the right direction,” junior Alex Hamel said. “[That] wasn’t going to be realistic, because a lot of the voters were undereducated in this election.”
On May 31 2024, Donald Trump became the first former president to be convicted of felony crimes. A jury found him guilty of 34 charges of attempting to illegally influence the 2016 election through hush money payments to an adult film star.
“I was mainly disappointed by the fact that [for one], we’ve elected a convicted felon, [and] I don’t believe he cares about women or LGBTQ+ rights just based on what he’s said in the past,” senior Fae Krauskopf said. “I don’t think that’s necessarily going to change. [He’s also had these] insanely unqualified picks for who’s going to run what in his government.”
Some of Trump’s picks include Robert F. Kennedy for the secretary of Health and Human services and Elon Musk as a leader for the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). These picks have been a subject of criticism from many. Junior C’nia Brown said she is concerned about women’s rights under Trump.
“I think it’s going to be the first turn into women’s rights being taken away,” Brown said. “We’ve barely had [Roe v. Wade] for 100 years, and I feel like it’s already being stripped away from us. I feel like that’s probably going to be my biggest concern about the next four years.”
Going into the presidential election, 81% of registered voters said the economy would be very important to their vote. Many voters were upset with Biden over the inflation that occurred after the election so they turned to Trump. Trump’s economic plan included cuts of the corporate tax and tariffs on imported goods.
“I [don’t think it’s] going to be bad for the economy,” Bassi said. “I really think he’s going to fix some stuff [with the economy], but for some people, like immigrants or LGBTQ+ people, it’s going to be hard. I don’t think he supports those people and [he doesn’t know how to best help them].”
