What You May Have Missed About the Election

By now we are all aware that Barack Obama has been reelected as the president of the United States, defeating Governor Mitt Romney. With close victories in the key swing states of Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Michigan, Virginia, and unforgettable Ohio, Obama was able to clinch the electoral college with 303 votes compared to Romney’s 206. And this is still without ever-troublesome Florida, whose 29 electoral votes have yet to be counted. Regardless, it was President Obama who reached the pinnacle 270 first. Even if, like me, you stayed awake until 2:00 am to watch Romney graciously concede and Obama give his acceptance speech, here are some things about the election you may have missed.

Social Media

Because I seem to be the only person in the world without a twitter account, I missed most of the live-tweeting that occurred as the results of the election came pouring in. And possible because I am the only person without a twitter, I find it fascinating just how many wars of the words begin on that site. The most famous election meltdown? Donald Trump, of course, who took to twitter to bash not only the majority of the country, but also NBC news anchor Brian Williams. After the Donald slammed the election as a “sham,” “injustice,” a “travesty” and incited Americans to revolt, the on-air Brian Williams reported that “Donald Trump has driven well past the last exit to relevance and veered into something closer to irresponsible.” As you can imagine, Trump once again vented to twitter, stating that the reason for Williams’ attack was due to jealousy over Trump’s television ratings.

On a much less aggressive note, twitter was also made history Tuesday night with a new record for the most-tweeted tweet. It was on the social networking site that Barack Obama officially announced his reelection. With the caption, “Four more years,” it was this picture that officially dethroned Justin Beiber’s earlier tweet, as the most retweeted tweet in twitter’s history.  

Other key highlights of the election include:

New Hampshire electing an all female delegation (Senators, House Reps, and Governor); Washington and Colorado legalizing recreational marijuana; Maine, Washington and Maryland legalizing gay marriage; and Minnesota voting against a bill to ban gay marriage.

All the silliness of social media aside, it is clear that the President will be facing serious challenges in his second term, including the continued division of the Congress. With Democrats controlling the Senate and Republicans controlling the House of Representatives, the President will continue to face gridlock unless the two parties can finally learn to compromise. In addition, the results of the election only further prove the growing racial and geographic divide within our country. Much of President Obama’s support came from the young, female, and minority voters, and generally voters in urban areas, while Governor Romney carried the majority of older and white voters living in rural communities. And with only a 2.4 percent difference in the popular vote, it is apparent that these differences are creating an almost perfectly polarized nation, causing clear concern for the future direction of our country.

If you want to see how your area voted, go ahead and check out this site for a county-by-county break down of the vote!

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