Hope rises for both parties as turnout rises, indicating growth in importance
By Matthew Wilson
The election watch party on Nov. 6 at John Carroll University gathered a small turnout: about 15 students and a few professors. They spent the evening switching between the three TVs which featured CNN, MSNBC and PBS. An attempt to get Fox News on one of the screens was unsuccessful.
The evening’s format allowed people to express their opinions and create open discussions about what they liked and what they didn’t like.
Professor Carrie Buchanan was on the outside looking in, since she is a Canadian who teaches journalism at John Carroll. She expressed her impression that many “Americans are scared,” when asked about why people appeared to be voting in unprecedented numbers for a midterm election. Her point showed reference to national polls that asked people if they were voting because of their support for, or fear of, President Donald Trump. This referendum-on-Trump aspect to the election was a factor in the increase to 114 million ballots cast this year, compared to 83 million in 2016, according to the news organization Vox.
In mid-evening, as the results poured in, Sharon Moore, a worker at the university, joined the group to see what was happening. When she heard that Sen. Sherrod Brown had been reelected, she was pleased and said she had faith that Brown would look out for everybody. She said she was also “excited about change” in some of the results.
When asked why it was important to her to vote, she said, “I want a voice in the world. I have grandchildren and I want them to grow up in a world where they don’t worry.” She was focused on her grandchildren’s future, and said Brown’s victory gave her hope that they could grow up safe.
Throughout the night, one could hear cheers when a candidate won or moans when they lost. All night there was a back and forth, like a tennis match, between candidates winning for each party. This also could have been a reason why John Carroll saw a low attendance at the watch party, Buchanan surmised: People might have wanted to watch the results on their own and not worry about judgment from other people as they celebrated or expressed upset with the results.
Another student at the watch party had a different view on how things went down. Joshua Smith said he was excited when the Republicans claimed the Senate.
“The election does not surprise me because it is a dead heat,” Smith said. He mentioned that “Trump encourages new people to run for office” because people see what he does and want to be like him in order to change America for the better. He also said that people should vote because, “It is their chance to get involved and have a voice.”
The election watch party wrapped up around 10:30 p.m., after it was announced that the Republicans had gained control of the Senate and the Democrats claimed control of the House, creating a power divide in Washington. This creates tension that can lead to some stress in government because the Senate will look at things one way while the House will look at them in another.
Some of the major results that came through for the state of Ohio included the election of Republicans Mike DeWine as Ohio’s new governor, David Yost as attorney general and Robert Sprague as state treasurer. These were back-and-forth races over the election season, but in the end, Ohioans saw a large Republican sweep.
Colin Swearingen, an associate professor of political science at John Carroll, was asked about the increase in voting and whether he thought it would continue in future elections. “The parties and campaigns are increasing voter mobilization efforts, which typically leads to higher turnout,” he said. He also stated that depending on who was running for office, individual candidates can create a stronger impetus for voter turnout.
In this election, both parties exhibited both excitement and disappointment, but having people engaging and voting is key to letting people express their views.
