University of Wisconsin-Madison students woke up to a “new world” Wednesday morning with the news former president Donald Trump was re-elected — with Wisconsin providing the final push in the electoral college.
Over a dozen students, faculty and community members shared with The Daily Cardinal their disbelief and horror that Trump — a two-time impeached, convicted felon who was found liable for sexual abuse, and whose campaign was animated by authoritarian rhetoric — was soundly re-elected.
UW-Madison junior Izzy Sunby told the Cardinal she went to sleep crying because of Trump's advantage in several swing states.
“I woke up this morning incredibly disappointed, especially with a sense of disbelief that the people surrounding me would rather support a rapist than a woman,” Sunby said. “I’m just numb today.”
She said she was concerned Trumps’ policies would imperil women's abortion rights and completely ruin any possibility to address climate change.
In addition to an overwhelming electoral college victory, Trump was the first Republican to win the popular vote in two decades — sweeping battleground states — and during his victory speech he claimed a “mandate.” Many people voiced their fears a second Trump term would roll back protections for women, people of color, immigrants, the LGBTQ+ community and other groups he demonized during the campaign.
“I think campus is going to feel unsafe for targeted groups,” UW-Madison sophomore Sophia Koo told the Cardinal, referencing Trump’s “racist and misogynistic and discriminatory hate speech” during his rallies. “A fascist has gained arguably the most powerful seat of power in the world, and this is a glimpse of what they will be doing with it.”
Multiple people were seen crying during lectures or discussions, asking “how could this happen” and “I can’t believe it.” Trump's victory was accompanied by Republican victories across the ballot, and many students vented shock, anger and despair over the future.
Despite two visits to Madison, and countless more by high-profile surrogates in the final stretch of the campaign, Vice President Kamala Harris fell short of Biden’s 2020 performance by seven percentage points across UW-Madison campus wards.
Rep. Francesca Hong, D-Madison, who was re-elected Tuesday and whose district covers campus, told the Cardinal the Democratic Party has to be better at engaging young voters where they are and said the Harris campaign failed to articulate and prioritize policies young people care about.
“This is a generation who has seen the worst of humanity and has every right to lose trust [in] government and be apathetic to [a] party establishment as well that has failed them,” Hong said, adding the Harris campaign “missed opportunities” to assemble a coalition centered around progressive policies such as eliminating student loan debt and housing.
Political science professor and director of the Elections Research Center Barry Burden told the Cardinal Harris may have fallen short of Biden’s performance due to discontent among young progressive voters regarding the Biden-Harris administration's Middle East policies, but he argued the bigger factor appeared to be Trump’s appeal to younger men.
UW-Madison graduate Will Friedrich, who canvassed before the election for the Wisconsin Democratic Party, said he encountered a clear gender divide in terms of voter engagement.
“It really makes me question the education of a lot of young men who were just seeming to not engage in any of the Democratic organizing I was doing and a lot of times implicitly acted as if they were obviously voting for Trump,” Friedrich said.
UW-Madison campus vote swings right
While many on campus reacted to the results with horror, Republicans on campus saw Trump’s victory — campus wards swung 14 points to the right — as an affirmation.
“The biggest takeaway from this election is that Americans have completely rejected the progressive excesses of the modern Democratic Party — from abortion, to immigration, to transgender issues — it is clear that Democrats need to moderate if they want to win future elections,” UW-Madison sophomore and member of College Republicans Benjamin Rothove said.
UW-Madison freshman Zach Tomlinson, who voted for Trump due to his border policies, inflation and pro-life stance, said Trump’s victory showed the country believed “there's problems that need to be resolved.”
“I think that we’re going in the right direction now,” Tomlinson said, who was wearing a Make America Great Again hat. He said he wore it to show “pride.”
Many posts UW-Madison students, particularly women, shared on social media highlighted the fact millions of people voted for Trump despite knowing he had been found liable for sexual abuse.
“America has failed [women],” said Isabella Kim, a UW-Madison Junior studying abroad in London. “I know many of my friends in London, as well as my boyfriend who is British, are in disbelief of the results and are now more concerned for my well-being and the well-being of others who will be negatively affected in America.”
Despite the shock, multiple students said the results didn’t change the way they viewed the UW-Madison campus but stressed it was important for people to come together in a time of stress.
While UW-Madison senior Emma Schaefer felt “betrayed” by Wisconsin voting for Trump, she said she hoped student organizations and advocacy groups would not become disheartened and lose their momentum. She added Wisconsin U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin’s victory gave her hope Wisconsin still had areas to grow.
“Today I feel defeated, and I see that emotion shared by many — students and faculty alike — as I walk around campus,” Schaefer said. “However, at least now we know where we are headed as a country and as a movement and we can start to form a path forward.”
Gavin Escott is the campus news editor for the Daily Cardinal. He has covered protests, breaking news and written in-depth on Wisconsin politics and higher education. He is the former producer of the Cardinal Call podcast. Follow him on X at @gav_escott.
