2016 Election

The Election 2016

When I was a little girl I was told I could be anything I wanted to be when I grew up. Unfortunately, that statement was not true for holding the most powerful job, The President. Years later, that dream is far from my radar. But constantly I thought of other little girls who wanted a similar dream. Hillary Clinton made that dream a reality. After fighting in 2008 to be the democratic nominee and then finally be chosen this year in 2016 I was super excited. Although she did have a share of things I did not agree with all in all I was with her. I admired her confidence, grace, and determination. Furthermore, I loved her quick responses when Trump would challenge her and her humble spirit when she worked with young girls impressed me. I was truly excited to see her finally get the role of being called THE President of the United States of America. There was truly no one else who had nearly as much experience to hold this office but Hillary Clinton. On top of all these admirable traits I absolutely hated Donald Trump. This man does not know what he is talking about, he brings out hatred in his supporters, and he is a bully. Therefore, I instantly knew that my ballot would never go in support of him.

Fast forward to Election day, I was excited to not only be able to vote in my very first election but I also got to cover it. I woke up eager Tuesday morning to go out in the field and talk with my fellow millennials about what I thought would be landslide of an election. Instead, of getting the bias reactions I was surprised to get a wide perspective from the students of the Catholic University. Most of the students at Catholic University that I interviewed with were not in support of Hillary Clinton or decided to not cast their ballot. They were so ashamed by these presidential candidates that they decided to not practice their right to vote. In all honesty, this surprised me. Furthermore, it infuriated me that after all these years we waited to vote and people actually choose to not partake. But the true journalist in me found out why. Most people’s reactions were that they did not have time or were not fans of either candidate. Although I was excited to have a wide range of perspectives I was still sad that some did not vote.

When finally getting the time to actually watch the election, I like many others were disappointed with the outcome. Personally, I thought there was going to be no competition and that Hillary Clinton would win by a landslide. From watching numerous newscast throughout this, election it seemed like everyone had Clinton predicted to vote. Therefore, when it showed that she wasn’t going to win it completely took me by surprised. As journalist rule #1 is to not look bias. I think most media outlets appeared as biased he constant times in which they spoke negatively of Trump, or spent countless hours focused on this man I think swayed the vote. Many newscasts almost declared Hillary Clinton as the winner and in result of that people did not think they had to go out and vote. Furthermore, I think the negative press of Trump also caused people that usually don’t vote to go out and vote for this man.
All in all, this election had a positive and of course negative feel. I had the opportunity to feel like a real news reporter. But I also saw America for how it truly is. This 2016 year will be one that I remember forever.