Midterm Elections 2018
By Wynter Aiken | Published on Nov. 8, 2018
The 2018 Midterm Elections was impactful, it brought out millions of first-time voters and it was a continuous improvement to making change.
Results came in fast and New Jersey scored big in Democratic pickups over Republicans for Governor (Bob Menendez pulling a win over Hugin), House of Representatives, and other local N.J wins.
NJ Governor Bob Menendez and Bob Hugin. Photo Courtesy of Manalapan Patch.
With all these races, whether for a federal, state, or local office, colleges nationwide are bound to feel the impact of yesterday’s midterm elections just as everyone else, Kean students were no different.
Senior Hannah Abiona proudly cast her vote for the first time in a midterm election while 2016’s election shock weighed heavily on her doubts.
“I wasn’t sure about voting in this election when Trump won, it definitely gave me huge doubts on whether or not my vote or even my family’s vote would matter anymore.”
said Abiona. “Seeing the results in the end made me realize, that yes I do matter and these elections are actually crucial to what happens in 2020. It’s was a wake up call.”
Midterm elections are crucial for the next 2 years in order to determine the route the country will be taking until the next presidential election. New Jersey’s midterm elections had a record-breaking percentage of women on the rise in the political world such as Mikie Sherrill, newly elected Democratic member for New Jersey’s 11th Congressional District in the U.S. House. It was the start of a new wave in not just New Jersey but across the country.
Mikie Sherrill. Photo Courtesy of MorrisTown Green.
First time voter and Junior Theresa Bruton expressed how she decided that this time she wasn’t going to sit out of an election especially with women now taking the lead.
“The way this country is going made my decision easy, it had my inner feminist rise proudly. Women in rise of political power is the new wave. I had no doubt that our vote as women was going to count.” said Bruton. “As a college student, local, state and country decisions are going to affect me and I hope people realize that they need to get out there because it isn’t just Jersey, we have to worry about but it’s the country too.”
First time voters, whether it’s for the midterms or for the first time ever, know what’s at stake and electing the leaders that they think will make change is worth the doubts and uncertainty. Please visit https://www.nj.com/news/ for more information on N.J.’s midterm election results.
You must be logged in to post a comment.