Election aftermath: Democrats shaky as right sweeps
Art by Kayman Mangan
Donald Trump and the Republican Party came out victorious after a historic election this past month. In congress, the Republicans maintained control of the House with a majority of 220 to 215 and flipped four senate seats to secure a 53 to 47 majority. In regards to the presidential race, all seven swing states voted conservative as Trump won both the electoral college and popular vote—312 to 216 and 50 percent to 48.3 percent, respectively. Contrarily, in Samo’s mock election, Harris received 71 percent of the votes while Trump received 12.4 percent. When Trump is inaugurated as the 47th president of the United States on Jan. 20, 2025, the Republican party will control the judicial, legislative and executive branches of the United States.
A Trump victory by this margin came as a surprise to pollsters and analysts as exit polls showed a slight favor to Vice President Kamala Harris nationally and in the Rust Belt states of Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin. Samo student Nahom Kinfegebriel (’26), however, is not surprised by Trump’s victory.
“It’s definitely a shame, but I kind of expected he would win,” Kinfegebriel said. “Trump has outperformed the polls in every election. In 2016—but also in 2020—Biden was favored to win by more. So when I saw how close the polls were this time, I kind of knew he had it.”
Anthony Salvanto, CBS News' executive director of elections and surveys, credited Trump’s victory primarily to Americans' discontent with the economy. In the four years of the Biden administration, Americans saw the cost of eggs, gas and other everyday goods. And while Trump ran his campaign on a promise of cheaper groceries, Harris was not able to effectively distance herself from Biden’s economy and assure citizens that she would bring down prices, explained Samo student Jacob Ovadia (’25).
“I don’t think Harris’ campaign put enough emphasis on the economy,” Ovadia said. “It was kind of this idealistic mess and I think it’s ironic that Trump’s campaign better aligned with the needs of everyday Americans than Harris’.”
The notion that Trump was the “economic” candidate was reflected in the stock market in the days following the election. Both the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 reached record highs, surpassing $44,000 and $6,000, respectively. Crypto currencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum spiked too, likely due to—as Yahoo Finance Market reporter Josh Schafer put it—Trump’s “crypto friendliness.”
The Democrats’ loss has precipitated a wave of finger-pointing and doubts about the party’s image. Senator Bernie Sanders said the Democratic Party’s alleged “abandonment” of the middle class was responsible for the loss which prompted a response from both Democratic National Committee Chairman Jaime Harrison and Democratic Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi.
“I don't respect [Sanders] saying that the Democratic Party has abandoned the working class families,” Pelosi said.
Pelosi, one of the most influential figures in the party and who is widely reported to have led the Democrats’ push to oust Biden, came out publicly to say that the election could’ve gone in a different direction if Biden had stepped aside earlier. Anonymous Harris aides spoke to Politico, blaming the president as well.
“We ran the best campaign we could, considering Joe Biden was president,” said one unnamed aide. “Joe Biden is the singular reason Kamala Harris and Democrats lost tonight.”
Former Biden aides, however, told Axios that Harris shouldn’t have any excuses considering she had $1 billion in funding. They also blamed Obama’s advisors for pushing Biden out. Pennsylvania Senator John Fetterman, a Democrat, condemned those who ousted Biden as well.
Rep. Richie Torres (D-NY), on the other hand, made a post on X stating the far-left is to blame for alienating centrists. Another New York Democratic congressman, Tom Suozzi, said the loss was, in part, due to Democrats’ push for political correctness.
While the Democratic party’s identity is cloudy, the mission of Trump’s GOP is crystal clear. Trump’s plans for his return to the White House can be found in Agenda 47, a manifesto with policies similar to those of Project 2025. Agenda 47 proposes reforming public education by getting rid of teacher tenure, holding elections for principals, eliminating “critical race theory” from school curriculum and encouraging prayer in school. The platform also proposes leaving the Paris Climate Accord and cutting climate protection policies. The president-elect’s plan takes a strong stance against crime, immigration and homelessness as well; imposing the death penalty for drug dealers, ending birthright citizenship and outlawing public encampments. The platform aims to repeal transgender rights by calling for the removal of federal funding or programs from educators or healthcare providers who encourage or provide gender-affirming care to adolescents.
In addition to planning policy, the president-elect is in the process of picking cabinet positions for his administration. Notable picks include independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr.—an anti-vaccine activist who dropped out of the race and endorsed Trump in Aug. 2024—as health secretary, Florida senator Marco Rubio as Secretary of State and former Florida attorney general Pam Bondi as Attorney General. Samo student Peter Jarvis (’25) expressed his fears for the second Trump administration.
“Trump’s whole cabinet will be loyalists, he has congress, the supreme court and he doesn’t have Pence anymore to hold him accountable—Vance will let him do anything,” Jarvis said. “He’s got unchecked power. I know he came out against a national abortion ban, but he’s a notorious liar who could’ve just said that to win the election.”
After major news networks called the election for Donald Trump, Harris and President Joe Biden addressed the nation. Although they gave separate speeches, the two had similar messages: to reduce political tension and to not be discouraged by the loss.