Nearly 50 percent of New Mexico voters came out in support of Hillary Clinton in Tuesday’s general election. Though Clinton took home the state’s five electoral votes, she came 42 electoral votes short of securing the necessary 270 to put a cap on what has been a historic campaign.
The Clinton campaign started Tuesday night with enthusiasm as many reputable national polls had her hovering at about 75 percent odds of becoming the first female nominee of a major party to win the Oval Office.
Though losing in the electoral count, Clinton came out on top in the popular vote by a narrow margin after it was all said and done, edging out President-elect Donald Trump with 59,861,038 votes to 59,638,006.
The House of Representatives and Senate will also be controlled by Republicans after key down-ballot races ended in their favor on Tuesday.
Despite the loss, Clinton’s bid was full of historic milestones. After announcing her run for presidency in April of 2015, and a fierce battle with Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders for the nomination, she clinched the bid at the Democratic National Convention, shattering the metaphorical glass ceiling she vowed in 2008 to eventually break.
Five months later, Clinton was predicted to dominate in the Nov. 8 general election.
Enlivened by her platform, supporters looked with optimism and jubilation to her ambitious plan to address climate change, reform the tax system and strengthen the Affordable Care Act.
Further, Clinton’s platform consistently emphasized immigration reform, a key issue in New Mexico, the state with the largest per capita population of Hispanics in the country.
Before the vote totals started coming in and it was apparent that the election would, at the very least, provide more dramatics than many predicted, Clinton’s supporters were hopeful of the chance that she would be commander-in-chief.
Josh Allan, a senior political science major, said at this point in the evening that he was excited for Clinton’s chance to continue President Obama’s legacy when she took office.
“Obama did a lot of great things. The country is moving in a progressive direction,” he said. “I hope she continues that.”
Allan said he supported Clinton in the general election because of her qualifications. During her campaign, President Obama had called Clinton, “the most qualified ever to be president.”
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“The Democratic Party has a better chance of fixing the state’s and nation’s problems,” Allan said, noting why he supported Democrats in local elections.
There had been so much optimism surrounding Clinton’s all but assured chances of victory — stemming primarily from nationals polls that predicted she’d dominate on Tuesday night — that it was a hard reality to face when it was Trump who came out on top.
At that point, many Clinton supporters voiced concern.
“The country is going to regret the decision to elect him as president,” said Allison Sikorski, a sophomore nursing major, on Wednesday after Clinton had conceded the race.
Sikorski voted for Clinton in the general election, and others reiterated her sentiment.
“On Monday I had this horrible nauseating feeling he could win,” said Molly Thomas, a sophomore nutrition major. “So I wasn’t that surprised when I saw he was ahead last night. I still couldn’t believe it. I still can’t.”
Despite her strong base of voter support, over 55 percent of voters had unfavorable opinions of Clinton, according to an aggregate of nationwide polls compiled by the Huffington Post hours before the polls closed Tuesday night.
Clinton’s favorable rating was 41 percent, according to the same aggregate.
A similar average compiled by Real Clear Politics found Trump’s unfavorability rating to be at nearly 58 percent, with his favorable rating just a few points lower than Clinton’s.
After casting a ballot for Clinton in early voting, sophomore Alex Gonzalez, a business major, had what he described as “a change of heart” about a Trump presidency.
“(Now that) Trump got elected, we have to approach things optimistically,” Gonzalez said. “We’re relinquishing our democracy by not supporting who the majority voted for.”
Gonzalez said he was anxious to see a woman in the Oval Office for the first time, but believes the responsibility now lies with the people to further women’s and LGBTQ rights.
Prior to Tuesday night’s results, Kaela McKee, a senior criminology and political science double major who voted for Clinton, spoke of her hopes for the future.
“I hope, regardless of the candidate, we get a more unified nation,” McKee said.
After Tuesday night’s tough loss, Clinton supporters still had hope.
“Clinton’s campaign opened the door for who can run for president,” Sikorski said. “I hope more women leaders from the House and the Senate come forward and run for president.”
Brendon Gray is a news reporter for the Daily Lobo. He can be reached at news@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @notgraybrendon.
