On election day, the first snowfall of the semester left campus silent. Like the gray clouds of the day, anxiety hovered over academics as they prepared for what would be a choice like no other.
In the feud between President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden, Cornell’s left-wing campus favors the Democratic nominee and many say Trump’s re-election, but as preliminaries and exits accumulate in the fall, many are also concerned.
While reading about her Latin American history elegance in her Bedroom Room at Balch Hall, Axaraly Ortiz ’24 said it was hard to concentrate on school the day before Election Day: “I feel like I’ve been so distracted at school lately. “says. ” And to this day, I’m not convinced of the magnitude of what’s at stake.
Ortiz, whose parents emigrated from Mexico, said he felt “uncomfortable” with Trump’s presidency because of his racist, anti-Mexican and nationalist rhetoric. She recalled how her classmates at a conservative Indiana high school treated her after her victory in 2016, joking that she can simply “be expelled. “
“I don’t know how other people will act based on the outcome [of the election],” Ortiz said.
Julia Bernstein, 23, said she was involved in how four more years of Trump would affect minority populations, and was frustrated by her appointment of Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett and the long-term reproductive rights of women.
And throughout the day, as low temperatures took over campus and academics ran between COVID-19 sites, rarely face-to-face classes, some open campus restaurants, and socially remote dormitories, rumors persisted about Election Day predictions and fears.
Sitting in a brown mask Monday in Klarman Hall, which she jokingly called “the last day of normalcy,” Bernstein hoped to finish her job and leave Tuesday free for elections, even though the election effects may be delayed. several days.
“It’s exhausting,” she said, involved in the long-term rights of women. “It’s mentally exhausting to think about how they’re going to get rid of our rights. “
Bernstein is involved in the post-election riots, especially of the right-wing teams that Trump. Se sat down with her friend, Julie Lee 23, as either categorically claimed that a Trump victory would be the worst-case scenario.
Ryan Meng-Killeen ’21 is a member of Cru Cornell, a Christian fraternity, holding this morning for election-related prayers.
“People seem anxious,” she says.
He thinks other people are coming to this election with “more cautious” attitudes than in 2016, when many think former State Secretary Hillary Clinton was a shoe inside. And many academics wonder how long they will have to wait for the final results of an election, as more electorate has mailed ballots to avoid going to the polls because of the pandemic. In New York, the electorate can still send their ballots on voting day, meaning many may not arrive for a week.
Others are involved in the outcome of an ambiguous election. Many Republicans question the security of the vote by mail, and in September, Trump refused to engage in a nonviolent force movement in the event of a defeat.
But Edwin Carrero, who works at 7/11 in Collegetown, said he hadn’t heard much about the elections at his store, noting that academics focused more on the Halloween party last weekend when some academics dressed up in costumes. despite COVID-19. restrictions.
“It’s like any other day around here, ” said Carrero, replenishing the refrigerated shelves.
And Mohit Mathur ’21, who also spent the afternoon in klarman, now quieter due to the social distance and a semi-closed temple of Zeus, said he thought the campus environment had replaced a lot in recent weeks.
“I think Cornell has already established his election-related culture,” Mathur said.
Ted Morency 22, who worked for Biden’s campaign, believes academics have other considerations that interest them now, such as how they will return home for Thanksgiving.
But he also believes that more academics were motivated to pass out and vote in this election after he regretted Trump’s victory in 2016. He plans to vote in the state of his New Jersey home and feels “optimistic” about the election.
“Once the effects are published, it will be more real,” Morency said before walking in the afternoon snow. “Right now, we’re like in our own little bubble. “
My brain more than involved in the next election, maybe it is because it is the first presidential election that I am eligible for, or perhaps because we are necessarily deciding between an experienced politician and a xenophobic businessman.