At 11:15 p.m. on Tuesday, roaring cheers filled Maxie’s Pizza Bar & Grill. Throughout the Homewood campus, students were celebrating and dancing. “Hail to the Chief” could be heard blasting outside dorms on the freshman quad. President Barack Obama was reelected as President of the United States after competing with Governor Mitt Romney in a close election.
Many students on campus were first-time voters, which heightened their enthusiasm.
“Since I was little, I accompanied my parents to the polls and it was so exciting that it was finally my turn,” freshman Emily Schoenfeld said.
Students took it upon themselves to better understand the issues and ensure that they were educated voters.
“I researched the issues that were important to me, and the respective positions of the candidates,” freshman Michael Weiss said.
Throughout Election Day, students piled into vans, cabs and buses to attend polling sites and cast their votes. The Hopkins College Democrats drove students to the many voting sites throughout campus.
“I’d estimate we drove between 100 and 125, and I feel great about the turnout,” junior Matt Stewart, President of the Hopkins College Democrats, said.
Hopkins students who did not have absentee ballots greatly benefitted from the assistance in reaching the polls.
“The voting process was incredibly easy. It took less than 25 minutes for me to reach the polling site, vote and return to campus,” freshman Adam Eckstein said.
Anticipations were high as students gathered at Maxie’s Pizza Bar & Grill for an Election Party event hosted by the Hopkins College Democrats, late Tuesday night.
“It was super exciting to be at Maxie’s. All the students were packed around the televisions and everyone was cheering as the results were announced throughout the night. Right now at Maxies, it doesn’t seem to matter who you voted for. I feel like what counts is that we all participated in this important election,” freshman Noah Landesberg said.
Many students cast their own predictions about the results the election would yield. “I’m feeling good about the election tonight. I have been watching Florida because, according to several election polls, it’s one of the key states to win,” freshman Luke Axiotakis said early in the evening.
Upon President Barack Obama’s reelection, students at Maxie’s could be seen hugging, jumping and celebrating with one another. The Hopkins College Democrats were excited about the success that came from their dedication to the election. “I feel great! I am so happy right now. We put so much work into the election this semester. We really put so much effort into Obama getting reelected,” Stewart said.
“We’re ecstatic because we’re obviously really happy about the outcome of the election, but also because we got such a great turnout from the Hopkins community,” sophomore Jordan Carmon, Vice-President of the Hopkins College Democrats, said.
Since Johns Hopkins is so close to Washington, D.C, some students got to watch the results and celebrate in our nation’s capital. “As soon as the CNN projected the results, all of Washington ran through the streets and towards the White House. It was amazing to see people from around the world, speaking so many languages and with so many accents, celebrating. It was absolutely packed outside the White House. Everyone was filming and photographing what was going on around them. People were even climbing trees,” freshman John Durovsik said.
Beyond the election itself, students were excited about the many other issues that were voting on in this past election.
Some students reacted passionately to the legalization of marijuana in Colorado and Washington.
“Amendment 64 is a positive step, legislation that will help the de-stigmatization of a drug that has clearly been less destructive than alcohol. Smoking marijuana is no more dangerous for your health than eating fast food every day: if you either without discretion, there can be consequences. But now, people don’t have to go to stupid, irresponsible lengths to conceal their usage- they will, however, learn discretion, once the resource is plentiful and legal. Just because alcohol is available to me every day doesn’t mean I drink at every turn; the same will go for weed in Colorado and Washington,” sophomore Andy Vargas wrote in an email to The News-Letter.
Many students rejoiced over the passing of Question 6 on same-sex marriage in Maryland, especially those who voted in-state.
“After I voted, I was overjoyed when Maryland approved the same-sex marriage act. I couldn’t believe that I contributed to such a historic moment in marriage equality,” Eckstein said.
Students who live in Maryland connected with the outcome on a personal level.
“To be honest, I wasn’t really surprised that Obama won Maryland. There is a large democratic population, especially in Baltimore,” sophomore Selena Guerrero-Martin wrote in an email to The News-Letter. “It’s really exciting that our state is one of the first to offer marriage equality to all people. I think that it gives the people who are affected by this battle for the right to marry whomever they choose a lot of hope that state legislatures are taking them seriously and doing what they can to make change to all for this equality.”
Students from states other than Maryland were also interested in the victories of candidates vying in the elections for Senate.
“One of the highlights of my night was when Elizabeth Warren was elected senator. She is such an inspiration to young women, like myself, and I cannot wait to see what great things she will do in Massachusetts,” Schoenfeld said.
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