All 16 of Michigan’s electoral college votes were cast in favor of President-elect Donald Trump.
“Congratulations to Donald J. Trump and Mike Pence for their elections,” Governor Rick Snyder (R) said in state senate chambers where votes were cast. Turning to the electors he continued: “thank you for your good work.”
Trump’s victory in Michigan has been met with doubts by many as the candidate won the state by a mere 10,704 votes — the first time a Republican has won Michigan in a generation. The last time the state went red in a national election was in 1988.
Former Green Party candidate Jill Stein filed for a recount in the state following the election, but it was ultimately blocked by the Michigan Supreme Court last week. Later that day, Trump coincidentally held a rally in Grand Rapids as part of his “USA Thank You Tour 2016” across the country.
LSA junior Collin Kelly, chair of the University’s chapter of College Democrats, said he accepts the results of the election, even if it saddens him.
“While I and the rest of the College Democrats are obviously upset about the outcome of the election, we respect our institutions and the democratic process and don’t dispute the outcome,” Kelly said. “We want to follow the lead of President Obama and hope for an orderly transition of power, when we must begin to make sure we hold the President-Elect accountable.”
LSA junior Enrique Zalamea, president of the University’s chapter of College Republicans, was unsurprised.
“It’s a result that we expected,” Zalamea said. “The Electoral College was created to protect against the tyranny of the majority, and this pointless movement of attempting to convert electors across the country only serves to encourage the violation of our democracy.”