Election Coverage | The Hound's Bark

Election 2020

Student Opinion

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HHS students get a vote! The Hounds Bark staff put out a poll to hear your voices for this upcoming election. As of today, Biden and Trump are very close in the popular vote. Biden has a lead of 50.2% of votes and Trump is right behind him with 48.2%. As you can tell, this is much different than our student held poll. With this election so close in battleground states and pandemic restrictions, we may not know who the next president will be for a couple of days. Thank you to Mr. O’Connor, Mr. Mokaram, Mr. Warf, Mr. Linker, and Mr. Gunter for having your students vote during class.

Special: Election Coverage

UPDATE: November 7, 2020 7:15 pm

Well, it's finally over folks! Early this morning, Joe Biden won the majority of votes in the state of Pennsylvania, therefore earning him the title of the president-elect. Following the announcement, parades of celebration and protest erupted all over the country, with many individuals commenting that their "faith in our country is restored". President Trump received the blowing news while playing golf this morning in Virginia, and throughout the day has made little comment other than to say that he believes he won the presidency and that the margin between the candidates was created by "illegal voters". When a presidential candidate is defeated, it is common courtesy for them to give a concession speech, reassuring their supporters and offering their congratulations to the president-elect. President Trump has made it clear that he has no plans to do so and continues to file lawsuit after lawsuit in an attempt to salvage a win. Tonight, at 5 pm PST, President-elect Biden and Vice-President-elect Harris addressed the nation in two historic speeches, emphasizing the fact that they will represent both those who voted for them and those who voted against them. Kamala Harris has made history as the first female and first woman of color to be elected Vice-President, and many believe that this inspiring win is the beginning of a new and better era for the United States of America.

UPDATE: November 6, 2020 10:05 am

As of this morning, Joe Biden is leading in Georgia, Arizona, Nevada, and Pennsylvania, and is on track to win the election. Because the margins are so slim, ballots are continuing to be counted and no official calls have been made for these states. The President is currently suing multiple states and cities in which he appears to be losing with allegations of "voter fraud". None of these claims are backed up with evidence and are thought to be politically driven rather than legally.

UPDATE: November 4, 2020 1:30 pm

So far, it has been a tense 24 hours. Joe Biden predictably dominated in Democratic states like California, New York, and Illinois while Trump received the majority of votes in predominantly red states like Alabama, the Dakotas, and Wyoming. The fate of the election now lies in infamous swing states, like Pennsylvania, Nevada, Georgia, and North Carolina. The Democrats have made shocking comebacks in previously red states, like Wisconsin and Michigan, while Trump has won a large number of electoral votes from his close wins in Texas and Florida. At this point in this life-changing election, Donald Trump has acquired 214 electoral votes while Joe Biden has gotten 264. 270 are needed to determine the next President of the United States.

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The White House from Washington, DC, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Meet: Joe Biden

Democratic candidate Joseph R Biden, who unsuccessfully ran for President in 1988 and 2008, served as a Senator from Delaware from 1973 to 2009 and is better known as the Vice President under former President Obama from 2009 to 2017. Biden grew up in Scranton, Pennsylvania and earned his law degree from Syracuse University. Through his long history of political work, Biden has been known to be a good middle ground negotiator, and happily accepted his nomination for President of the United States in August 2020, choosing California Senator Kamala Harris as his running mate.

Issues

COVID-19:

Ensure access to testing
Enhance protective equipment and require masks
Distribute free and effective vaccines when they become available
Expand national defense and protect at-risk groups

ECONOMY:

Provide financial aide to prevent job loss during the pandemic
Extend unemployment insurance
Not raise taxes on anyone making less than $400,000 per year
Increase minimum wage to $15 an hour

HEALTHCARE:

Protect the Affordable Care Act
Add onto it by giving more choice, reducing costs, making it less complex
Give every American access to affordable healthcare
Protect the right to an abortion, fund planned parenthood
Prioritize mental health

CLIMATE CHANGE:

Ensure 100% clean energy by 2050
Encourage climate change to be a top priority in foreign politics
Enforce restrictions on major pollutants

CIVIL RIGHTS:

Eliminate the gender and racial wage gap
Ensure racial equality in the education system
Expand employment opportunities for the disabled
Protect LGBTQ individuals from employment discrimination
Reverse the transgender military ban
Expand gender options on federal documents
Ensure that political appointees represent the layout of the country
Address racism as a systematic problem

Photo credit: Unsplash

Meet: Donald Trump

Incumbent President Donald J Trump was elected in 2016, after winning a majority of electoral votes but losing the popular vote by almost 3 million to Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton. Born and raised in New York City, New York, President Trump earned his bachelor's degree in economics from the University of Pennsylvania, and took over his father's company, renaming it the Trump Organization. Through his campaigning, President Trump has rallied up numerous supporters, with whom he promises to “Make America Great Again”, and eagerly accepted his nomination for reelection in August 2020, choosing to once again run with Vice President Micheal Pence in representation of the Republican party.