I think we can agree that this year has been one of the most catastrophic ones this country and the world has witnessed in a long time. Like a series on Netflix, we are witnessing what many consider this year to be the season finale. For a large demographic of this country’s people, the results of this election seem like a matter of life and death. If Donald Trump were re-elected many minority groups would have faced the chance of losing certain rights, and would have taken one big step in the wrong direction(1). This election is a historical one and has resulted in protests and denial all across the country.. This is because we live in two different Americas, so much so that the words “United States of America” have become only that, just words.

Starting November 3rd, big cities such as New York and Los Angeles began boarding up stores and businesses in order to prevent destruction within the cities. Protesters began setting up for the night anxiously awaiting the results. In New York, according to Journalist Brenna Lip on TikTok, police began to mobilize even before 5 pm on November 3rd and before any results were even announced. In Washington D.C there were both Biden and Trump supporters outside the white house protesting.

                       Even when election day turned into election week, protests and peaceful marches continued throughout the days leading up to the results on November 7th. According to Leo Jared Scheck who has been closely observing and journaling this election, Biden supporters were packed outside the White House leaving messages and signs, singing, dancing, and chanting “black lives matter” into the crowd. He reported that there were a few Trump supporters earlier in the day before the results were out but they soon left once the race was called. The celebration lasted all throughout the night.  

                     Before the results were announced Trump already claimed he was the winner, giving false hope to his supporters. When the actual results came out he was quick to say that the elections were rigged and that a lot of the votes for Biden were fraud and invalid. Then he proceeded to sue states and demand recounts. Many states so far have rejected Trump’s case due to lack of evidence that there is any actual fraud going on (2). But the Trump administration has vowed to seek a recount in major winning states.

                        The ignorance Trump is projecting concerning his defeat in the 2020 election has sparked a movement of Trump supporters stating that Biden has still not won the election. This false hope that Trump has once again set in place is extremely irresponsible and childish. All in all, Biden is the official President-elect and the recounts that Trump is demanding are highly unlikely to change anything. We should keep in mind that Trump is still the President of the United States and therefore he still has a few months left until Biden officially takes over, the date being Wednesday, January 20, 2021. In the few weeks leading up to the elections, Trump had done the most to put the odds in his favors by nominating conservative elected officials to defend him if he lost, and now that he has lost, he will be relying on those people in order to continue to ignore his defeat. Though, like mentioned earlier, nothing is likely to change(3).

      Sources:

      https://bit.ly/trumpandlgbtq (1)

      https://bit.ly/trumpgetsrejected (2)              

      https://bit.ly/trumpselectionfraudclaims (3)