8:05 p.m. — SRWC Center: Shaiden Lopez, a senior political science major from Burnet, reacts to new polls closing and Vice President Joe Biden projected to win New York.
“I’m hopeful that more states will turn blue and Texas will turn blue,” Lopez said. “Time will tell.”
8:10 p.m. — 201 Mesquite St.: Emma Jaxx, a freshman accounting and finance major from San Antonio, begins to see the results of key battleground states favor President Donald Trump early.
“It’s gonna be tight in Trump or Biden winning,” Jaxx said. “It could even be a Biden blowout, but I think Trump has a lead. I think Trump will take Ohio for sure. I think he’ll take North Carolina and Florida, which is a surprise. Biden’s making it easier at this point, but we’re still waiting to hear on a couple key swing states.”
8:15 p.m. — 201 Mesquite St.: Hannah Wetz, an agriculture business major from Orland, California expressed excitement on Trump’s win in Arkansas over Biden.
“I thought it was really good for Trump to win Arkansas,” Wetz said. “Arkansas did really good. It’s almost all red and conservative, which is exciting.”
8:45 p.m. — SRWC Center: McKenzie McPherson, a senior political science major from Abilene, continues to watch the election votes trickle in. President Trump holds an early lead in Florida, and Texas remains up for grabs..
“I am disappointed, but I’m also not surprised,” McPherson said. “I think that the Cubans are leaning towards the Republican party because of the patriotism and nationalism aspect of the party. I’m impressed that Texas is so close right now. If Texas goes blue, the election is over.”
9:10 p.m. — SRWC Center: Amelia Little, a psychology major from Fort Worth, expressed frustration for the electoral college, which she believes is not necessarily good for democracy.
“Honestly, I’m anxiously awaiting on the electoral college because ultimately, that’s where the decision is made,” Little said. “I hope Biden wins, and I hope to see that this democracy is not completely flawed. I hope this democracy we live in is well-represented in the electoral college. If not, I hope we can make changes to the electoral college to make it more democratic.”
9:13 p.m. — SRWC Center: Andrea Ezquerra, a christian ministry major from Houston, is optimistic for Biden as Trump takes his first lead in Florida.
“Florida did just turn red,” Ezquerra said. “It was kind of expected but not really. We were keeping our hopes up because in the last election it was pretty close.”
9:26 p.m. — 201 Mesquite St.: Emma Jaxx, a freshman accounting and finance major from San Antonio,
“Ohio was surprising me with how close it was, but I’m happy he’s polling ahead now,” Jax said. “Florida was also a surprise because Biden was leading, but now the polls have flipped.”
10:07 p.m. — SRWC Center: Elizabeth Holland, a junior political science major from San Antonio, attends the ACU Democrats watch party in the final hour of the scheduled watch party.
“I am a little nervous,” Holland said. “I know that we’re still a long way from all the votes being counted. I think it’s going to be neck and neck for sure. I am still optimistic that Biden will win because I know that there has been a lot of voter turnout, especially young people.”
11:23 p.m. — ACU Optimist Newsroom: Paige Taylor, a freshman journalism major from Norman, Oklahoma, continues to watch the results trickle in throughout the evening.
“I don’t think anyone knew how tonight was going to go,” Taylor said. “Some states you can definitely predict, and some you definitely can’t. It’s definitely interesting to sit back and see how all of this is playing out.”
