Aggies share their opinions and predictions on the recent presidential election
The 2020 presidential election came to a close on Saturday, Nov. 7, presenting the country with President-elect Joe Biden. While some students hoped for a Republican candidate and others for a Democratic candidate, the results of the election gave Aggies a chance to reflect on the past and look to the future.
Karan Brar, a fourth-year year managerial economics major and the chair of the Davis College Republicans (DCR), went into the election supporting President Donald Trump’s re-election. Brar shared that he believes the election results were a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and would have otherwise been different.
“I truly believe that if the COVID thing never happened, I think Trump would have cruised his way to re-election,” Brar said. “Because a lot of people would have said ‘Okay, yeah, he’s sometimes crude, he’s said some crude things I don’t like, but look at the economy, my life’s better.’ But the COVID pandemic just wiped it out.”
According to Brar, DCR was primarily concerned with electing a Republican candidate that agreed with their views on certain issues, rather than taking a specific stance for or against Trump.
“I don’t think it was mainly [a] pro-Trump stance, more that we were just voting for the Republican person,” Brar said. “It wasn’t that we were really just pro-Trump, it was mostly we were voting for the person we believed would be best for the economy, best when it came to jobs, best when it came to foreign policy.”
While the presidency didn’t go to Brar’s candidate of choice, he remains optimistic about the future. He also pointed out that although the Republicans did not take the presidency, they left the election with many victories.
“Overall, I do think that I am a forward-looking person, so even though Trump did lose, I think we are in a great place for the future,” Brar said. “Our party needs to have an internal conversation about the future of our party, and I think we could have that. I think that overall, it was a great night for Republicans and Trump.”
Daniel Bazargun, a fourth-year political science major and the political affairs director of the Davis College Democrats (DCD), went into the election supporting Biden. Bazargun hoped for the swing states to flip blue and for a peaceful transition of power. While DCD did support Biden as a club, Bazargun shared that members varied in their individual opinions.
Given the shift in power, Bazargun predicted changes over the next four years with Biden’s presidency.
“I think we’re going to have a calm four years overall compared to Trump,” Bazargun said. “We’re going to have less division in the country, and we’re not going to have so much hatred against other political parties. I believe we’re going to see some progress in terms of human rights, immigrants’ rights and hopefully more progress in environmental and climate change in the next four years.”
Bazargun has a personal connection to Biden’s win because he comes from a family of Iranian immigrants. He shared how Trump’s presidency caused many complications for his family, and he hopes for a brighter future for immigrants under Biden’s presidency.
“Under Trump’s administration, everything was harder for us, bringing money was harder, just meeting family was harder in general,” Bazargun said. “I hope that the immigration system will work as it should, to serve people.”
Emily Wong, a second-year communication major, went into the election with the hopes of President Trump’s defeat. Wong participated in a fellowship called Generation Rising!, in which she called residents in swing states to increase voter turnout. While she is happy with the results and with Biden’s win, Wong stated that it is important to recognize the people who worked tirelessly to create this new future.
“I see so many people posting on social media that, ‘We did it,’” Wong stated in an email. “Or worse, that Biden did it, that he won those swing states. […] He did not win those states on his own, there were so many organizers and volunteers who put in their emotional, mental and even physical labor into getting voters to turnout. So many people from around the country were making calls, sending texts, campaigning on behalf of him.”
Moreover, Wong believes that the fight is far from over. According to Wong, the public must continue to work to combat issues and push Biden to carry out his campaign promises.
“Just because we’re projected to have Biden for president doesn’t mean we stop here,” Wong said. “There’s so much more for us to do, we still need to hold him accountable to all the promises he’s made. I’m relieved that we’re going to have someone in the White House that is going to prioritize this pandemic and [make] sure that people are going to receive the care and treatment we all deserve.”
Written by: Nora Farahdel — features@theaggie.org
