What is your election night, 2016 story?

Holy shit my first paragraph makes no sense. I was trying to say this will be like people's Kennedy and 9/11 stories. I got all jumbled there. Sorry. Carry on.

I was watching MSNC coverage. The look on Rachel Maddox's face freaked me out. She looked scared/shocked.

When it became painfully obvious that Trump won, it was like taking a bullet.

it started as a non-event, everyone I knew assumed they knew the outcome. that evening it morphed into some mind-fucking, nauseating horror show that did not seem possible or plausible. a nightmare from which there is no waking up.

R3, your comment pretty much perfectly describes Brexit referendum night and the aftermath for me and my family.

I was at work and then at a bar. But by the time we left work (6:30 Pacific) it was pretty much in the bag for Trump.

Someone kept shouting out the states they were calling for Trump and I think when VA or NC fell it was like, holy shit, this is really happening. Because, yeah, we figured it would be over by 6:30 and we'd be able to celebrate and so everyone had planned to hang around until then.

I'm on an odd schedule so I had to make plans to be up at 8PM to watch the returns. I get up, plop down on the couch, and our cable and internet is completely down. It's the only time in a decade it's been down except during a storm. That was odd.

I got on 4G from my phone while calling the cable internet company, and just as I read 538 saying Trump had over a 50% chance of winning, the cable guy asks me if I'm watching the election results. I told him no because the internet is down, buddy. He was practically cheering and giddy and wouldn't help me at all, he just couldn't concentrate. I hung up, called back, got a guy who was helpful and also sounded like he was on the verge of tears.

About a half hour later they get the internet back on, Trump's got an even bigger chance of winning, so I ran to DL and Twitter to find out what the hell happened. When I heard Florida went Trump after two weeks of news telling us all the early voting showed Clinton would take it, I knew something was wrong. People were too stunned to freak out which made things a little scary.

But they were shocked here in town, too, and I'm in a red state. We went nearly 50/50 Trump/Clinton with Trump getting a couple hundred more votes, so there's still tons of Trump supporters, but they weren't happy. Restaurants and bars were empty for a couple of weeks. No one would mention the election at all, everyone was quiet and withdrawn. I've never seen anything like it, except for how people were after 9/11, which sounds like hyperbole but I don't mean for it to. With 9/11 people were upset for weeks and weeks, this was only about 10-14 days, but it was very much the same feeling.

Seriously started to have a panic attack once I saw the way things were going. It seemed to drag on forever. Had to go for a long walk to try and calm myself down and get away from it. Didn't help. Yeah, yeah, mary.

Like others, it immediately reminded me of 9/11. It felt like the country had been attacked.

OP, first off, I also live in West Hollywood. I wonder if we know each other by sight.

I had gotten hooked on Cable News the last three months prior to Election Day: the CNN panels, MSNBC, even Fox occasionally. I felt it was important to know "what the enemy was saying". I remember Election Day feeling very celebrational. A couple news outlets went as far to predict that Hillary might win by as much as 85%. Around 7:30pm, alone in my living room 'cept for my big dog, I turned the tv on;. Didn't like what I was seeing. Trump was ahead in Electoral Votes, not all that unexpected with most of the states he had expected to win. Still, it was a little alarming, and didn't get much better. I was going back and forth from CNN and MSNBC. I occasionally put on Fox and noticed they were far ahead of the other networks in their projected counts, with Trump far ahead. I wrote it off as "fake news". Basically the beginning of my denial period. I was on the phone back and forth with my political science buddy from College. She lived in one of the few blue sections of Ohio, was a huge fan of Hilllary, and was somewhat more optimistic and hopeful than I as the disturbing results continued to trickle in. By 9:15pm I couldn't take it anymore and shut the tv off. Trump was far ahead, but a lot of the swing states weren't in yet so there was still a chance, including Michigan. I decided to take my dog for his final walk of the day. It was beautiful outside. Mid-60s with a gentle wind. I live on the lower-middle class South side of Fountain, but decided to walk him on the North side, the upscale part of town. haha It was very quiet, peaceful. Beautiful, well-kept houses. As long as i refused to watch the news, there was still hope and I could live one more night of magical thinking. Walking the neighborhood was like when you'd walk during the final inning of the final game of the World Series. You're aware of various house-parties going on around you. But if your hometown team isn't one of the players, you don't know how to interpret cheers coming from one household, while jeers coming from another. I live in an extremely liberal neighborhood so it was mostly safe to speak aloud one's disdain of Trump. I then heard huge screams of joy coming from a house a block and 1/2 away. With cautious optimism, I looked down at my dog and said "Hey, maybe that's a good sign. Maybe Hillary just won Michigan!". Suddenly, a piercing shriek of pain from the house right in front of us. A woman's voice, "Oh my God! He's a fucking psychopath!!!!" The tv along with every light suddenly distinguished. I looked back down at my dog, "Uh-oh, I don't think THAT was a good sign!"

We walked a couple more blocks, then home. I went straight to my room, turned on some classical music with a time, and gently rocked to sleep with my best friend at my side.

Sorry *Extinguished*

For some reason, I was exhausted that day. I was switching back and forth between Colbert's live cable special and MSNBC, I then fell asleep on my sofa. I woke up to find out Trump won the election. I literally thought I was still asleep and dreaming!

I was alone at home. When it started to look bad for Clinton and good for Shitler, I turned to watch FLEABAG. I binge-watched the whole mini series in one sitting, something that I have never done before or after. I was in a grip of such anxiety, as if I've just broken up with someone or as if I've heard about a family death, I could barely follow the show. Nothing seemed real. It still doesn't. (I read Shitler's comments about Germany and NATO this morning, and it makes me sick to my stomach that this deeply ignorant POS is our POTUS.)

I was staying with my sister. We both went to sleep thinking we'd wake up to the first female president.I woke up a few hours later and turned on the TV and he had just won. I woke my sister up and after a few "you're kidding right?" She saw it for herself.we stayed up all night giddy with the absurdity of the whole thing. At one point I said "hold me David I'm scared " and she thought it was funny even before I told her it's datalounge roots.

Voted in the morning, went to work in the afternoon, and then fell asleep before the results were in, later that evening. Woke to a nightmare that won't go away.

I'm grateful I wasn't at a gathering of friends for election night, as I have been in years past. That kind of nightmare scenario you want to go through in your own space. That said, I'm pleased to have had my roommate there with me to watch a movie and take our minds off it.

This really wasn't a thing where you could "commiserate", as in past elections. It's just a nightmare that won't ever seem to end.

I was ready to celebrate with a couple of friends. Couldn't believe what was happening. Champagne bottle is still in the fridge. Saving it for impeachment celebration.

Good grief, MARY OP! Get a grip, loser.

Too soon, OP.

R16 why is that a Mary thing? Why am I a loser?

I will admit, I wish I'd been better prepared, but I don't think you can blame me for being distressed that a not very bright man with a terrible temperament has just basically just been handed the nuclear codes.

How do you view it? I'm genuinely curious.

Saturday Night Live's view

Seriously, I wouldn't have reacted the same way if McCain or Romney had won (though I wouldn't have been happy). I might have reacted the same way if Ted Nugent had won. You like to think there's a bottom to how low your country can go.

R20 McCain and Romney were fathomable.

I've been taking Tuesdays off, so I was planning on puttering around the house throughout the day, prepared a good meal and bought a good bottle of champagne to pop with hubby when they announced Hillary had won. We'd been planning out the next 8 years as we prepare to retire, thinking that we could count on slow, steady growth with a competent leader who cared about everyone, and instead... well, our plans have gone out the window and we've had to completely alter our thinking. We're well positioned for retirement, but the idea that we'd be able to count on healthcare until we reach Medicare age has collapsed, our investment strategy has gone from risk & reward to conservative & (very) slow growth, and thinking I'd be able to retire at roughly the same time as my slightly older husband has not come up since election night.

For the first time in my life, I've begun to really worry about what would happen if... as opposed to believing that I'd be able to handle whatever came my way. We both count on our health insurance and are among the crowd for whom Obamacare made a real difference. Prior to the ACA, our health insurance was just over $3000 a month; as of January 2014, that dropped to only $1800 per month and is presently just over $2000. We expect this to double in the next 5 years, and I'm worried that we'll have to cut back on our insurance so dramatically that it will basically be limited to catastrophic coverage. It's a real question if Medicare will even be available by the time I reach eligibility in 13 years. It's ludicrous that our healthcare is more than the mortgage on our primary home. Thank God we saved and invested through our 30s and 40s. The 2008 financial collapse killed our business and we've rebuilt our careers since, but it has been hard watching all of the income gains flow to the über-wealthy while those of us who work for a living have waited for it to trickle down, to no avail.

So, election night was tough. Neither of us slept a wink. The next few days were exactly as R6 portrayed: our neighborhood was a ghost town for a week as people just absorbed the shock. People I did come in contact with were acting like they'd lost a family member. People who were normally happy, outgoing and fun to be around have become sad and bitter as the truth of what Twitler is going to do to this nation has sunk in. Friends who own a restaurant have reported that business is down by about 20%, and it's killing them as the tipping point for such businesses is table turns. My brother was going to remodel his basement now that my nephew has moved out for college, but that's on hold. And some friends we'd been discussing going on a cruise with later this year agreed that spending money on things we don't need is not a good idea.

I don't want to sound all sad-sack, and I completely understand that my situation is vastly better than most. I guess what I'll say is that this election sucked the joy and being excited about wrapping up our careers and preparing for the next stage of our lives right out of us. We're waiting for Twitler's policies to kick in and affect the economy, which will begin to show signs of slowing by this Summer even though the real collapse is a few years off. Our hope at this point is that they'll destroy healthcare before the midterms and the rubes will vote the republicans out in time for the Democrats to save the economy (and Medicare and Social Security) before it collapses completely, but the republicans are smart enough to see that if they kick enough grandmas and grandpas off Medicare too soon, they'll lose their majorities. My greatest fear is that we're in for another collapse like 2008, only this time it will be substantially worse because so many people never got back on their feet after the last one.

I'm back to work on Tuesdays, making up for post-election losses and preparing for the coming downturn. I have also lost all sympathy for poor, rural people, who are about to suffer the consequences of their votes. I hope they learn something, but I doubt they will.

I was looking at different twitter feeds and I read one by Republican pollster Frank Luntz that basically said something like "Let me be clear, Hillary Clinton is our next President".

When a Republican pollster says that, you have to figure she's got it locked up.

So it probably didn't sink in when things started turning south.

From that point on, I decided this is all one massive hallucination that we haven't snapped out of yet.

I was at the Javits Center with my dear sister from California for the "victory party" that turned into a shell-shocked valley of misery. We knew something was wrong when they turned off the projections and kept playing Hillary commercials and videos. I will be happy never to hear that Katy Perry song ever again. 9th Ave walking home was eerily quiet and deserted. HK has five bars on every block and my sister kept calling out the scores on all the Tvs. "Florida for Trump...Pennsylvania for Trump...Ohio for Trump..." We went to bed but neither of us slept a wink. What a night, truly horrible!

I was playing cards and trying not to pay attention...until the finally vote totals but I was extremely sad but not extremely surprised. 35 years of propaganda has changed this country and rich corporations can pay for a lot of propaganda. Our government really should put a stop to the sedition and throw the criminals in jail. I am very serious about that. These people tell lies and pretend it is the truth, that is NOT free speech, not at all.

I only got to the third thread here, or so. It's too disturbing to read further. It really is. What a disaster and how sad for America!

I was on DL the whole time from Europe watching some live feed on youtube of one of your channels, waiting for Hillary's victory speech. I screencapped 538 for posterity for the first woman winning and thinking never a US election will be so easy in the future.

The consequent threads turned into a fucking nightmare as you remember. The gradual panic setting in and the despair was just awful. When I saw the place where Clinton should have had the speech with the glass ceiling I finally broke down and cried. The sun was up in my country when I got to bed and thought if this is my reaction how must Americans feel.

America is capable of the worst. You treated and continue to treat Hillary Clinton horribly, when I'm sure that the minute she drops dead you'll erect statues of her all over the place and that makes me very angry.

For posterity:

Boozy tears.

Fell asleep around 9pm, as I wasn't too interested in watching the coverage. Woke up at 6am, turned on the television and said "holy shit, no way" out loud. Spent the next few hours shaking my head and pondering whether I woke up in some bizarre parallel reality.

The sky was so blue that day...

I worked the afternoon shift so all l I'd seen were the early returns and exit polls. I went straight to bed after work never doubting that Hillary had won, and didn't hear about the big Electoral College switcheroo till the next morning.

They'll never admit it but I believe the Trump voters were more shocked than anybody else.

I went to the neighboring city for a shopping trip at Costco, Clinton was leading when I left. On the way home, NPR analysts were talking about how Trump defied all odds and won the presidency, it was surreal!

Here's what a lot of gay men did. They went to a bar or an election night party, pretended be dismayed as Trump's victory became apparent, then went home and secretly gloated. Incidentally, Trump supporters (including his gay supporters) were as shocked as Clinton's supporters when he won.

[quote]how Trump defied all odds and won the presidency

Don't know that we will ever know the full story here...

When it started to look like he was going to win, I got this knot in my stomach. Then I just couldn't take it anymore, so I turned off the lights and went to bed. My phone kept dinging throughout the night and I got up to pee, I don't remember the time, but I saw the top alert that said he had been declared president. And the knot in my stomach turned into this really sick feeling. I went back to bed and the next morning it was worse. I got on DL to see what everyone was saying, but then thought better of it then just turned the computer off.

I worked 4-12 midnight at my hotel. I was watching the coverage live as well as many of my horrified guests.

I had quit smoking for 10 months. By 9pm, I had bought a pack of Camels and have been smoking ever since.

I hate Trump because I love America.

I went to Mom's place to watch with her. We celebrated with sparkling apple cider when Trump was declared President.

You're a piece of shit r37, and so is your whore mother.

R38 That's very un-American of you.

If you support Crooked Hillary, that's your problem. Lots of gay men supported Trump. It's one of the key reasons he won Florida.

My partner kept telling me it was over, he won, but I refused to believe it. FUCK ME.

Trump is a con man and a criminal, R39. Shame on you for being so stupid.

R41 Hillary Clinton is an unrestrained pathological liar and plunderer of the public. Your vote is nothing to be proud of.

While you're here, what is your election night story?

R39, "Crooked Hillary?" Still hanging on to that trope?

WHAT THE FUCK HAS TRUMP DONE GOOD FOR THE COUNTRY SINCE JANUARY YOU PIECE OF SHIT???

Scandals, controversy, making a MOCKERY of our nation? This is the hallmark of a good President?

Oh yes, we really dodged a bullet, didn't we you useless crock of dog shit. Rot in hell, you and your whore mother. Choke on your cider, you obvious alcoholic.

Yes, Mary R22, it does sound as if your suffering has been and will continue to be horrific. I join everyone else here in hoping you're still able to profitably balance your investments and hold onto you non-primary home(s). It'll also be a shame if you have to delay your early retirement by a couple years.

I went to sleep. The next morning turned on the radio and learned that Trump won.

R43 MARY!

I hope you get get beaten up by an Islamic terrorist or an M-13 gang member who's here illegally.

I crapped my pants. But I do that all the time.

I bet she crapped her pants again.

R46 spreading the fear. You're the MARY!

That night I would have updated my resume but after my boss chided me for my failures, I had to wait a few weeks before I could type again.

I found myself shanghaied on a ship to the West Indies after a drunken brawl with a tattooed Trump supporter.

It was more like this, R19:

R47/R48 keeping the hope for Bernie!

I totally agree, R20. If it had to be a Republican, I could have lived with just about anyone other than The Dear Leader.

I remember waking up at 3am EST and seeing His Would-Be Imperial Majesty and his demon spawn smirking at a victory press conference.

When I arrived at work early (as I always tend to do), my boss , a woman who could beat any man at anything, was crying like a little child. We hugged for more than a minute. We only did the bare minimum that day and had a drink together when the office closed. I stepped in for her when she called in "sick" the next day.

R54, President Ted Cruz would have also made me cringe and cry, but at least he wasn't putting up an African dictatorship model with friends and family. FFS, will someone please get Ivanka out of there?

Seeing the pain and fear of the Establishment and the Media as their control was wrested away was priceless.

Knowing the conman was elected and would betray those who voted for him gave me infinite pleasure. It was only a matter of time.

I'm surprised we haven't had a multi-paragraph lament from the Food Stamp Troll.

I live in Florida. I pretty much know the state is the indicator of who will win. I was at work streaming CNN. At about 7:30pm when I was about to leave, it wasn't looking good. When the blue counties barely made a dent I was shocked.

I continued to watch CNN's dramatic PROJECTIONS, slipping down in my sofa a little more with Wolf Blitzer screaming each development. I was up until 3am watching the coverage.

That how I am now R57. I know it's not right, but the sheer pleasure that I'll get as he fucks over all of his fans makes me giddy. I hope all those Rust Belt and Coal motherfuckers starve. I have zero fucks to give about them and their plight. I always knew that Baby Boomers were pieces of shit, but it will be a joy to watch them get theirs. Assholes the entire lot of them.

OP's story is a fake. If he was given a provisional ballot it was treated as a provisional ballot.

R60 I hope you're attacked and taken hostage by Islamic terrorists or M-13 gang members. Obama and his minions let them into the country in the name of "diversity."

Jesus Christ, 9/11 was MUCH worse. Not even close. Maybe it's because I was in NYC? We saw those buildings fall and thought as many as 50,000 were dead. We were personally scared for our lives. It was unbelievable. No one expected it. It was horrible. We all knew Trump could win. No one saw the terrorist attacks coming. And the fucking Pentagon was attacked. It was completely insane. We were scared out of our minds. I guess it was just a TV show in West Hollywood? I mean come the fuck on!

[quote] Rot in hell, you and your whore mother.

The dude celebrated Trump's win with some apple cider with his mother. I'd say he's already in a doily-covered hell of his own.

Not at all, R63. Everyone knows 9/11 was much worse -- we're talking about the reactions to what happened. The stunned silence that lasted for days or weeks was very similar to the reaction to 9/11. Was that really not clear?

I voted via absentee ballot a couple of weeks before election day. I'm in California. The day of the election, I got up, got online and one of the first places I visited was DL. I remember posting on a thread about patriotic songs, feeling upbeat and confident about the day. I had no doubt we'd be celebrating Madam President by the time the night was over.

I watched the results come in with my parents. Both of them voted for her. Even my county, normally red, went for her. Let's put it this way: around 7:30 PM I laid my head on my mother's shoulder, and cried. (Yes, I know, I know...MARY!)

I've been mad as hell ever since. My belief in the people of this country has been irrevocably shattered. Before, I always believed, even if we disagreed about different things, that fundamentally we were all Americans and when push came to shove we could and would put those things aside for the greater good, as we did after 9/11. But now it's clear to me that no matter what I do or say, I will never be a 'real' American in the eyes of the Trumpkins. Never mind that my family has been in this country for nearly 100 years, with several veterans among us. We've never taken anything we didn't earn. But we're Latino, so we are subhuman in their eyes, period. They were cool with Trump subjugating and oppressing anyone who wasn't THEM - but now that their snake is in the process of biting them as well, they want to cry about THEIR betrayal. Fuck them all. The sooner they die off and leave this country in the hands of those who want to move it forward instead of dragging it back, the better. It's too bad so many other people who tried to do the right thing will suffer along with them.

I guess I've blocked it out, it was so traumatic. I can't remember where I was. At home, I'm sure. But was I watching TV? I don't remember. Anyway, I woke up so depressed this morning, perhaps because of the DeVos article in Rolling Stone, which made me consider suicide.

I was numb for about a week after the election. Couldn't believe this was happening, I still can't frankly.

Someone should find and link the several election night poll troll threads. They were hilarious.

"Sure we f&f'd and banned every poster who tried to tell us what was happening outside our little bubble but we are in SHOCK that things aren't going as we thought they would. How could we be blindsided like this. Why aren't we fifty points ahead?"

I was travelling for work and the night before the election I went out and bought a nice bottle of Pinot Noir. My plan was to order room service and watch the results when I got back from my client site. I was in Sacramento. By the time I arrived back at 6:30 things looked bad. I ordered food but ate and went right to bed. Through the next couple hours I would wake up to the cheers of people at the bar of the hotel, which was right down the hall from my room on the first floor. I would check my ipad and Trump was still way ahead. I couldn't believe it. I was in California - why would anyone be cheering for Trump? It seemed like a horrible nightmare. I woke up about 4 AM and looked at my ipad to see he had won. I wasn't able to get back to sleep. Later that morning I brought my client the unopened bottle of Pinot Noir.

R61, you're wrong. The poll worker made a mistake. He was holding my provisional ballot sleeve, and I went to vote. When I was done, I handed my ballot back to him, expecting him to place it in the sleeve, he must have forgot, because instead he just fed it into the machine. I have no reason to lie about this.

It ended in tears and a greasefire

I had intended to watch the election results but fell asleep with the TV on MSNBC around 7pm. When I fell asleep Clinton was a shoo-in. And then I woke up around 330am and Rachel Maddow was snapping at Nicole Wallace and the world had lost their shit

I felt unusually nervous that day. I didn't think he stood a chance but I couldn't even stomach having him on the ballot, just in case...

As the night wore on and so many states were too close to call, I decided to just go to sleep. However, it was a fitful sleep and I kept waking up to hear more gloomy news. I finally just got up when I heard that Trump received a call from Hillary.

When they reported she had conceded, my trashy, washed-up cheerleader of a neighbor and her hilllbilly mother ran out on her porch screaming for joy. Hillbilly Mom chanted and sobbed, "Thank you, Jesus! Thank you, Jesus!"

I felt like I had just had a horrible breakup. Days and days of sick grief and disbelief which hardened into anger and nilhilism.

I'll probably survive this financially, but many of his ardent supporters will not. Someone on DL wrote that red state people just don't understand how much we truly, deeply hate them now. I couldn't agree more. I want to watch them burn.

My trashbag neighbor, after years of struggling, just got her house foreclosed on last week. Good.

Once Florida was flipping back and forth and it appeared Trump could win it, I pretty much started hyperventilating. I knew it was over. By the time Virginia was called I fully accepted it as inevitable and there was, um, some Marying.

It's probable the Young Turks have the best election night 2016 story.

Here's the thing: we all know republicans cheat. They openly gerrymander, proudly restrict voting rights, make it harder for brown people to vote, close polling stations, and now, try to make everybody show ID to exercise their right to vote. There is no doubt that all of this is true. But does it stop there? Who's to say that they didn't "lose" 100,000 votes in PA alone? What about WI and MI? There's no paper trail. They got away with stealing the presidency in 2000, why wouldn't they try it again regardless of the orange shitgibbon in the driver's seat? What, Shitler won't do whatever the GOP establishment tells him to (with Vladimir's consent, of course... but those policies benefit who again)?

I agree with every single poster who bears no sympathy for the Trumpkins. I know a woman whose son makes his living selling solar panels; he won't have a job in a year (if he's lucky). I've spoken to neighbors who just rant about how awful the Democrats have been to Trump, thinking that their Social Security and Medicare are secure because they're white. I can't wait for the budget cuts kick in and these people suddenly find out that their grandkids are going hungry because their mother, who works at Wal-mart, lost her SNAP benefits. And just think of what happens to the price of gasoline when Shitler ignites a conflict in the Middle East or Asia.

This country never learns.

[quote] I know a woman whose son makes his living selling solar panels; he won't have a job in a year (if he's lucky).

Have solar panels been made illegal? I hadn't heard.

[quote] And just think of what happens to the price of gasoline when Shitler ignites a conflict in the Middle East or Asia.

Thank god we've been at peace

This is precisely the reason why I shrugged my shoulders and cackled when he won. To see friends of mine who had been so high and mighty on their social media then posting videos of themselves crying, celebrities that shouted from the hilltops that chances were so low that they would leave the country(did any actually move?) that gave countless millennials false hope because people nowadays rather hear Lena Dunham as their source of news rather than educating themselves.

This SJW sensitive bullshit that makes my millennial generation so embarrassing, because many of you are actually serious about how traumatised and shaken you were by it, and comparing it to 9/11 is insulting to the 1000 plus people that died horrific deaths that day. I would be curious to see how this day's people would of handled actual fearful times like the Cuban Missile Crisis and WWII. Those college students back in the day weren't given pizza parties at their schools to help them deal with the day. Try reading some world news that isn't from the US media and look at lives of countries that have real problems and pull yourselves the fuck together, quit simpering, grow a pair, and actually do something proactive about the issues you say you care about(posting the latest CNN article to your Facebook does not fucking count) to make sure we get a decent president in office next time.

I was out doing last minute canvassing for Hillary in Ohio and didn't get back to the local temporary office site until nearly 7pm.

There was talk about how many people were still in line to vote when the polls closed at 7pm (if you were in line before 7pm, they had to let you in to vote). Several of us who had been out pounding the pavement to gotv were sitting around waiting for our next orders. It seemed like a lot of people had turned out to vote.

That made me feel good. High turnout usually favors Dems. We agreed not to turn on the TV as the local organizer was on the phone to someone in Columbus about what else we could do.

Then I just got this really bad sinking feeling that I couldn't place. Dread and fear. We were all anxious and trying to calm each other but when I left, I felt very cold and scared.

I'm in NYC. I went to vote in the morning at my usual precinct. In 2012, even though New York is a safely Democratic state, there were lines around the block, people really mobilized against the threat they saw in Romney.

This year, there was no line at all. I walked in, voted, and walked out in 15 minutes.

I was shocked. That's when I felt like something was wrong: The passionate turnout from '08 and '12 wasn't there. Then I told myself I was just being paranoid.

R79, I'm one of the people on this thread who mentioned that I cried that night. I'm no SJW and no millennial (I'm in my mid-40s). I'm not on FB or Twitter, and the area of California I live in is deep red - no liberal bubble to be had here. There have already been immigration sweeps in this area, and doubtless more to come. If you were able to shrug your shoulders and cackle that night, I'm betting you have some insulation from the effects of this dreadful administration, likely financial...and, given your non-American spelling of 'traumatised', quite possibly someplace else to go if things get unbearable. You're not wrong that people should be channeling their anger and their grief into action, but get the fuck out of my face with the contempt and condescension, kiddo. The percentage of millennials on DL is small, and I guarantee you that most of the people posting their stories on this thread reacted the way they did BECAUSE we have lived through shit you haven't, and know things you and your friends don't.

I knew it was over after the first debate. Trump showed up completely unprepared and just winged it. And it didn't move his numbers one way or another. While a few percentage points of Republicans "came home" at the last minute, about 80% of them were ok with voting for a candidate who knew absolutely nothing about the country, the office, or how the government operates. At that point, there was no reason to believe he wouldn't win because enough of the country had decided to blow up the system. Or at least that's what they thought they were doing.

There were many moments where I was convinced in my gut that Hillary was getting way too far on the wrong side of issues. Associating with groups that would hurt her (Muslims and immigrants who don't vote). I assumed I was being racist, my "gut" was based on a reading of the electorate that was out of date, and her campaign had better numbers than I had access to.

But when Hillary cancelled her fireworks the day before the election, I knew the floor was caving in. Second dumbest move in the history of politics. It didn't get played as a huge story but it could have been. The dumbest move I've ever seen came from Obama eight years before. The day before election day (Monday), Obama's grandmother died. She raised him. He was sitting on a 6-8 point lead. He could have cancelled his big rally speech. He could have avoided talking about it. But he didn't. He went out there and with misty eyes talked about his grandmother. Had he lost control and gone from teary to crying or sobbing (a likelihood if not just an undeniable possibility), he might've blown the whole fucking election.

I was with one friend. He had Trump nailed from the beginning as a fascist. I didn't give Trump enough credit for knowing what he was doing. Anyway, the friend was in tears. Then he called his coke dealer.

Another friend came over. He's Jewish. I opened the door and he said "can you hide me?"

Nervousnous, shock, panic, disbelief, outrage, embarrassment, grief....

I keep wanting to turn the clock back to the night before the election when everyone knew that Hillary was going to win. How different the world would be today! And tomorrow!

I was working on the computer, drinking some wine, streaming The Young Turks on the corner of the screen. When THE OMINOUS TONAL SHIFT HAPPENED I opened a tab to watch the NYTimes' online Trump/Clinton meter start to change, and when it predicted an over 80% chance for Trump, I started to laugh

I turned off the TV and went to bed early around 8:30 (eastern).

Having a good night's sleep helped me deal with the bullshit of the following day.

[quote]I felt unusually nervous that day.

I did, too. At some point over the summer I started to get kind of worried about Clinton's chances. It started with idiot Bill getting on the plane with Lynch, which I don't think was anything sinister, but seemed to be a harbinger of mistakes that would resonate thanks to a biased media. Then Clinton got pneumonia, then Comey sent that letter.

But what really got me was a study published on Slate, I think, the day before the election, which showed that 1/3rd of self-identified Democrats thought black people were less human/less evolved than white people. It really hit home the fact that there could very well be a LOT of white Dems who wouldn't vote for Hillary because they were still shaken by the experience of a black man as president.

Then the Coast Guard leaked to TMZ that Clinton canceled the fireworks display. From then on I was a nervous wreck. MARY! me all you want, I was very worried about that.

[quote]This is precisely the reason why I shrugged my shoulders and cackled when he won.

So, which did you do, Mr Awesome at r79? Shrug your shoulders because you didn't care, or cackle in glee because he won? It's hilarious how the "you all deserve it" trolls can never quite get the tone of their tales right. They try to work too much in; they want you to know they don't care AND that they laugh at you, even though those things are contradictory.

I also enjoy the people like you who act as though the REAL problem were your "friends" on social media "acting high and mighty." I mean, if you're the kind of person who thinks people saying shit on Facebook you don't like is the most important problem to deal with, then it's safe to say your personal insights into something complicated like politics aren't exactly worthwhile.

[quote]It really hit home the fact that there could very well be a LOT of white Dems who wouldn't vote for Hillary because they were still shaken by the experience of a black man as president.

When will it hit you that identity politics is what costs Democrats elections? You need to stop branding entire groups of people as racist and/or sexist if you want them to join your cause. "Vote for me or you're a bigot" is a losing strategy.

[quote]You need to stop branding entire groups of people as racist and/or sexist if you want them to join your cause.

The Democratic Party doesn't do any such thing, and neither do I, but you're apparently one of those whiny little cunts who thinks any talk about racism means all white people have been maligned and that's the worst crime in the world.

Even the study I mentioned doesn't do what you claim. The quote: "33 percent of white Democrats and 34 percent of high-income whites rated black people as less evolved than white people, compared with 39 percent of white Republicans and 41 percent of low-income whites. Dehumanizing views are pervasive across white social groups."

Does it ever bother you that you can't form a personal or political philosophy without lying?

That was the night America committed suicide.

I expected R44's response because that's how jealous people react when confronted with someone who has spent a lifetime working, building, sacrificing, and hoping for a better future for everyone laments as they watch what they've worked for evaporate. I know it's shallow to put it in the terms that I did (being that the topic of this thread is my election night story, however...); what you're missing, R44, is that every LGBT American has to plan for our future differently than typical folks because there is nobody there to care for us or about us when we need it. FFS, we only gained the right to marriage two years ago — marriage being one of the fundamental building blocks of a successful and happy life, both intellectually and emotionally as well as financially — and now we're worrying about a SCOTUS nominee who openly, proudly states that he will vote to overturn Obergefell at the first chance.

My story is your story, bucko. My fight for respect and value to this culture benefits not just me and my husband, but you, your friends, and everyone around you who you love and value, and even those you don't. I didn't fight for the Affordable Care Act simply because it benefitted me; I fought for it because it respected and equally treated my friends, my peers, my community and everyone else. And this is the source of the pain and anguish I felt on election night. It's not that I'll suffer and have to "delay early retirement" as you put it: it's that the idiots who believed Shitler really, truly thought that they were disadvantaged somehow because [italic]everyone[/italic] shared in Obama's successes, which they read as the brown people getting something they *think* they're not.

Life is not a zero-sum game. If everyone has healthcare, it doesn't mean that poor, rural white people suddenly lose theirs, contrary to what poor, white, rural people think. And they think that because that's what Shitler and the republicans have been telling them my entire life... and between poor choices, an evolving economy that has shifted and is shifting away from high-paying low-skilled jobs, and a dominant culture that is based on the superiority of one segment of the population over all others, they think that they bear no responsibility for their shitty lives and bleak prospects. They think they deserve the good life because they're entitled... as, apparently, you do too, R44.

Go back and re-read my post, but this time, instead of seeing it as a statement of personal disappointment, look at it this way: it's not that I won't be going on a cruise this fall with friends; it's that I won't be contributing to the full employment of all of the gay people who work on that cruise ship. As I and everyone else reacts to the rubes cutting off their noses to spite their faces by reining in discretionary spending — not out of choice, but out of fear of what Shitler is going to do long-term to this nation and its economy — there are literally millions of people whose livelihoods are going to suffer. I'm sure there is a socioeconomic term for the feelings hubby and I had on election night, but the bottom line is that we might as well act like Trump supporters and put ourselves first before we consider the impact on the economy, our cities, our neighborhoods, and our communities.

So, to be blunt and bring it home in the hope that maybe you can understand my disappointment in the outcome of the election, think about the gay guys I rented an apartment to last year, risking that they would have jobs to pay the rent, be stable enough in their relationship that they are still together when their lease comes up for renewal, and that they would care for and respect my property. I could have more easily rented the apartment to a lower-risk person, and given that the very people who need people like me to take risks cackled at the outcome and doffed their glasses of sparkling juice to Trump's victory with their mothers makes me all the more cautious and conservative in what risks I'm willing to take.

Jesus Christ, r22. I thought your first post was a parody. I'm sorry Trump's election ruined your cruise.

Some real Mary's on this thread.

How do you all get through life without weeping hourly?

*Marys

OMG, r84.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

6:30 that Monday I found out that my husband had been having an affair for the past year or more. Early Wednesday morning I found out about Trump.

I let out the famous Princess Diana Dead Scream!

So many of you sound like such crybabies. You all looked to Clinton almost as if she were the second coming of Christ when in reality she isn't anything more than a crooked politician who "cares" about all of you only if it serves her agenda. She is no savior. Had she won, it likely would have been business as usual and tax cuts for the rich and endless war as the order of the day, just like most of the rest of the Beltway would sanction. If Trump is no better (and I said IF), at least his actions are making people pay attention to the corruption which was already present.

However, too many of you are just seeking revenge and aren't thinking critically. Many of you sound as mindless as the so-called "deplorables" you unjustly criticize and you accept whatever negative things you are told about Trump without doing proper research, such as with Meals-on-Wheels. Stop REACTING and start thinking. Detach, do real research and get some perspectives that are informed with love and balance. To persist in hatred won't hurt your target - only yourselves, and you won't change a goddamn thing for the better.

I rolled around in my own vomit and then the realization hit me that I'm no prize either.

I didn't masturbate for a week after.

I live in NY so I wasn't exactly frantic to get home to vote but I left a little earlier than usual to get home to settle in with some cake (I view fat) and watch the CNN coverage of Clinton's victory. I went out of my way to stop at a local pet shop I'd never visited to check their fish inventory. When I got back into my car with some freshwater fish, I had the "Savage Nation" radio show and Trump came on to basically give Savage's listeners a "thank you for supporting me" message. It was pretty clear from him tone of voice he thought he was going to lose. I guess this was around 6:pm EST? Earlier, maybe. Anyway, got home and was watching and group texting a Colombian friend who lives in FL. He kept telling us, "Oh, don't worry, the Latinos here won't let Clinton lose." My mom was staying with me and goes to bed insanely early, so I told her, "that's OK, go to bed, this is over." And then....I guess around 9:30 pm, things began to change...I stayed up watching, amazed. Woke up my mom at 3:00AM to tell her the news. Felt surreal.

Oh, crap! Mary R22/R93 managed to detect the oozing green of the jealousy underpinning my post. And then she put her finger on the slothful, abject lack of accomplishment that has characterized my life. I bow before her superior achievements and decades-long, selfless commitment to bettering the lot of others. I can only hope that those poor cruise ship employees can manage to scrape together rent money in the absence of her extravagant gratuities.

[quote] You need to stop branding entire groups of people as racist and/or sexist if you want them to join your cause.

[quote]he Democratic Party doesn't do any such thing, and neither do I, but you're apparently one of those whiny little cunts who thinks any talk about racism means all white people have been maligned and that's the worst crime in the world.

A Kinsley gaffe occurs when a political gaffe reveals some truth that a politician did not intend to admit. The term comes from journalist Michael Kinsley, who said, "A gaffe is when a politician tells the truth – some obvious truth he isn't supposed to say.

"DNC Chair Candidate: My Job Is To Tell White People When To Shut Their Mouths"

A lot of coastal blue-state Social Justice Warriors in this thread. Gays living outside your elitist bubbles didn't share your viewpoint. An open secret among Republicans is how many gay men defected to Trump in the MIdwest and South. It was one of the reasons she lost Florida.

And all of those people in Florida — 1.7 million of them — are losing their health insurance. It's a win-win: they'll die and won't be able to vote for republicans any more, and we Californians won't have to pay for their health care any more.

It was a dark and stormy night...

Oh Bucko, you still don't get it. I'm not surprised.

Some of my favorite trolls are the "Trump is pretty great, I'm a big fan of love" people like R100.

I'm not really sarcastic here: I have always adored the crazy hippie-esque fuckers who hate centrist, moderate and/or liberal politicians with the heat of one thousand suns, while practicing their love 'n' forgiveness on the conservatives and rightwingers who hate them and probably want them dead. It's a product of their self-centered nature; their peace-love-balance shtick is all about making themselves feel better and/or superior, so they make a huge show of tolerating the intolerable ("But Hitler loved dogs and painting!"). It's also got a hint of desperate "please love me, daddy" to it.

It's always an entertaining trainwreck with these crazies. Love 'em to pieces.

[quote]that's how jealous people react when confronted with someone who has spent a lifetime working, building, sacrificing, and hoping for a better future for everyone laments as they watch what they've worked for evaporate

No, it's how people who are empathetic to poor and low-income people who have spent a lifetime working and struggling react. You're not the only person who has spent decades working toward a goal, but you're one of the vanishing few who has multiple homes and large savings and retirement accounts to show for it.

No one is jealous of you, the individual; you don't matter. The people who spent a lifetime working hard but who will be literally devastated by Trump's policies are who matter right now. Interjecting with your own whines about how you may move from upper middle class to middle class because of Trump is selfishness on your part. Own it.

Then why the fixation on taking/not taking a cruise? It was a metaphor, and a particularly apt one given the percentage of gay people who work on cruise ships, who will be impacted by the nature of what happens when people — like me — who retrench into conservative economic stances when faced with the inevitable downturn followed by recession, or in this case, depression, when republicans take control.

And then we have an election wherein the people who take act like they're alone, unheard, and neglected. The refuse to look at the reality of who benefits from government largess — by and large, them — because they have been spoon-fed a web of lies calculated to play on racist belief. And in so voting, they have hurt themselves and alienated people like me who proudly pay in the highest tax bracket so that they have resources on which to draw.

I just happen to believe that government and policy have better outcomes than charity, particularly religion-based giving, often using largess as a cudgel. I prefer a level playing field where there is a bureaucracy to police the program, and it based on need rather than which god you bow down before, and despite what the republicans will tell you is inefficient and the heavy hand of government, is a fairer, more equitable and accountable system (because if we can't tell Catholics to stop raping children, how can we tell them to stop applying a religious test on who receives aid and who gets to adopt a child?).

As to your criticisms of being whiny and selfish, I'll own that. I'm tired of being hated for giving. I'm tired of trying to make the United States a more perfect union, only to have the people who directly benefit from my work spit in my face, call me names, and most importantly, deny me rights. This election opened my eyes like none before it: if the people who need and get the preponderance of government benefits are so ignorant, narrow-minded and, bluntly stated, stupid to see that the taxes I pay feed them and their families, then so be it. If they truly believe that a buffoon like Donald Trump cares about them, then they can watch as he gives massive government welfare to the already most profitable huge corporations instead of insuring the citizenry. If it is more important for them to deny a single black mother food stamps than it is for them to get healthcare and retirement security, then they can lay in the bed they're making for themselves.

Oh, Mary, R112, you just promised a few posts back to stop trying to explain the nuances of your economic vision to us rubes. Please spare yourself any further embarrassment.

[quote]I'm tired of trying to make the United States a more perfect union

You, uh, kinda advocated for the genocide of the entire state of Florida upthread there, buddy.

There are more than 1.7 million people living in Florida. and those that are going to lose their insurance deserve to because they, by and large, voted for Shitler. Elections have consequences,

Cheers to all the gay men in Florida who voted for Trump. Obamacare is collapsing under its own weight and needs to be replaced.

I had been informed early in the morning that my best friend had a massive stroke while driving. Throughout the day they were doing tests and there was supposed to be one more test by a neurologist or someone to determine if he was brain dead. I was mentally exhausted and didn't watch the returns but it didn't seem like Hillary was going to lose yet. I woke up the next day to find two things on my phone, one a text from a friend saying my best friend was brain dead and organ harvesting was going to happen shortly, and one was an AP news alert saying the election went to Trump. It was a dismal, dark, sad, horrible day. It was really the worst of times, and still is.

R117 I am so very very sorry. I can't even find words. I hope sometime soon you're able to make some sense of it all and find peace.

I had been saying for two weeks that trump was going to win. Dearest Him argued with me, citing all the polls and statistics. I just had a gut feeling and I was depressed the entire time leading up to election day. We didn't watch because he was convinced that Hillary would win and I was convinced she wouldn't. Finally, later in the evening we turned on the tv and Dearest HIm was shocked. I instantly went numb and remained so until the end of January. I've had to leave most of my SM because I can't read the articles about who he has insulted, who he is threatening, and all the ways he is punishing the 99% for living. Unlike some, I do not have a strong financial base on which to rely. When Medicare becomes a HSA, like many others, Dearest Him and I will die. When he privatizes social security, Dearest Him and I will die.

To all who think we are sore losers....this election was the most important in the history of our country. It determines the direction of our country and the direction of our country is now hatred, abuse, greed, and collusion with a country who has been our enemy for my lifetime. Those of us who rang the warning bells have been proven right. I am not going to touch on the illegal issue but consider the dismantling of public education. The loss of Meals on Wheels which will have deeper ramifications for elderly and disabled than many realize. The destruction of the EPA so that the quality of our air and water will decrease to dangerous levels, as they were in the 70s. And he's only been in office for a month and a half. Our allies are angry, the rest of the world has lost respect for us. He is clearly using his position to enhance his own wealth and power. All of that is okay with his supporters because they hate others more than they ever loved their country. I was present in NYC for 9/11. People may have feared that 50,000 died in 9/11 but they didn't. We can see the number of people who will die from losing food and healthcare. I am in no way minimizing 9/11. This is similar because this, to me and to others, is the death of America. We are now a fascist state, democracy is dead here. I'm not convinced there will even be an election in 2020. Nothing I've seen from him and his Ministry of Deplorables indicates that they will be willing to abdicate the throne in 2020. I hope I'm wrong.

R119 Do you really think that democracy would flourish and other countries would respect us if we had elected Crooked Hillary, that Elena Ceaușescu wannabe who used her office to enrich herself and harass her political opponents while lying about everything?

I'm not even American, but I had so much adrenaline so I couldn't sleep. Because of the time difference I knew the results wouldn't be announced for hours. Anyway... I eventually fell asleep but I kept waking up. I remember checking the results in the middle of the night... I went on Datalounge and basically saw "omg Trump is gonna win", I saw Hillary losing more and more states and I was like "oh shit". I kept telling myself I'm glad I'm not American, although the whole world is basically fucked with Trump as president for USA. Anyway... I had a hard time going back to sleep. I basically slept 2 hours that night. I was really worried how this would affect me. Then the next day I was like "get a grip!" The world will continue to spin. Nothing will change for me. Sure, it sucks and sure I wish Hillary won, but she didn't, so.

R117 my heart goes out to you

I woke up at 1:30 AM EST, thinking I would see Hillary's triumph as the first woman president only to be greeted with the horror of the NYT home page indicating that Trump's win in PA virtually assured his victory. I went back to bed, curled up in a ball and pulled the blankets over my head, hoping some miracle/correction of the world order would put things right by the time I woke up.

It didn't.

I decided to hang myself from the rafters with the belt of my caftan, but the weight of my earrings made the whole room come crashing down.

What was DL like?

My best friend died that night of a massive trauma. I woke up to a sad, gray world.

I went to sleep, drunk, when I couldn't take watching the results anymore. Woke up, put on the jazz station and never went back to the shitty classic rock I used to have the radio tuned to. I know most of the listeners are deplorables so nope, not going to listen to it anymore. I'm also convinced that most pick up truck owners are deplorables too so I sneer when I drive next to one. The election made me a much more unpleasant, hateful person.

[quote]What is your election night, 2016 story?

It involved a lot of snoring.

Sorry about your friend, r126

OP could be one of our many, right-wing trolls on Datalounge who like to masturbate to liberal woes.

So I'm going to post a recap of Election Night 2018 and all the Republican congressmen who went STRAIGHT DOWN THE SHITTER!

How do random threads like these get revived well over.a year after the last post?

Crooked Trump is a-okay with r39!

You and your whore mother's crooked candidate is more crookeder than mine!

It felt like hitting a brick wall going 100 miles an hour. I probably got shitfaced and passed out, I can't remember.

Obama deported illegals just like every, other President before him.

Now if he just would have locked up the loonies, we wouldn't have to worry about r62 OR Trump!

Oh right, r79. It's the DEMOCRATS who get their news from faulty sources.

How many Russians died or got robbed for Putin to pay you to write this propaganda?

I was this.close to going to the Javits center (I worked on HRC campaign). When early returns started coming in close and for Trump, I just knew. I took a Klonopin and went to bed at a ridiculously early hour, like 9 pm EST. Woke up to our national nightmare and spent a week or so in true mourning, walking around in a zombie state or crying. I live around NYC and friends knew I’d worked for HRC twice and they would just sob when they saw me on the street.

Until you're willing to give up any and all protection from the law, you, too are a Social Justice Warrior, r106.

So go re-broadcast your "SJW" Degradation Failure up Donald Trump's Russian-hooker-pee-covered taint. At least the vibration will give your Fuhrer some pleasure.

Not even the Republicans have the balls to repeal Obamacare, r116.

Just like they don't have the balls to cut the government spending they pretend to abhor as they borrow another $trillion each year.

Your party is a fraud, completely indefensible. Just let go, you can't win around people who know the truth and have basic math skills.

- 14.3/10 for r117.

There has to be something funny and true when you're trolling about politics.

r119 also mistakes Republican masturbation for satire.

Come back when you do something for anybody else, Deplora-bator.

r120 throws in an '80s Romanian dictator reference.

WE CAN SEE YOUR TROLL PAYCHECK FROM PUTIN, BORIS!

Yeah, half the posters on this thread are on "E.S.T." Time, r123!

Well, all the liberal tears are gone now because America is waking up to Trump's lies and destructive behavior and American voters chose the Democrats to lead Congress again.

The Godtoddler's trade wars are tearing down the world economy, and a lot more Deplorables are losing their jobs, so we can start celebrating the electoral defeat of #CrookedDonald and the shitter awaiting him in 2020.

I woke up on Election Day like a bride: rosy, thrilled, a little controlling about just how MY perfect day would be spent. After working on the Clinton campaign for eighteen months, I was ready to celebrate, and sure that by nightfall I'd be knocking back glasses of champagne and creating a story to tell my unborn children. Maybe I'd even get close enough to Hillary Clinton to hug her, to whisper "Thank you." I had dreamed about it every night for the last two weeks.

So on Tuesday — Jesus, it's almost embarrassing to remember — I smugly selected a baby-blue sweater with a not-so-subtle pussy motif and headed to vote with my boyfriend, smiling at the elderly socialists on my block like it was Sesame Street. I packed my HRC 2016 memorabilia into a brown box with my I VOTED sticker smacked on top. I spent the afternoon phone-banking with friends, and it felt more like icing on the cake than urgent business. Because as horrifying as I found Donald Trump's rhetoric, as hideous as I found his racism and xenophobia, as threatening to basic decency as I found his demagogue persona, I never truly believed he could win.

I'd been traveling the country for the last few weeks, in swing states like North Carolina and Colorado. While I'd dealt with a few irritating email questions (those fucking emails, as if they were a worthy corollary to fraud and sexual assault), the resolve and passion of students, many of whom had made their way over from the Bernie Sanders campaign, gave me a sense of hope that got me downright high. I didn't see how with faces this bright, diverse, wise, and passionate anything but the best — the only — result could prevail.

The three hours I spent at the Javits Center Tuesday night, surrounded by campaign staffers and fellow surrogates for Hillary Clinton, are blurred and spotty. At a certain point it became clear something had gone horribly wrong. Celebrants' faces turned. The modeling had been incorrect. Watching the numbers in Florida, I touched my face and realized I was crying. "Can we please go home?" I said to my boyfriend. I could tell he was having trouble breathing, and I could feel my chin breaking into hives. Another woman showed me her matching hive, hidden by fresh concealer.

I hugged the women I had spent eighteen months with, laughing and plotting and spreading our love for Hillary Clinton and her message. My party dress felt tight and itchy.

By the time we'd made it over the bridge, a friend called. "It's over," she said. "I love you." I was frozen. We stopped at the diner. No one was speaking as they ate, no one in the whole place.

At home I got in the shower and began to cry even harder. My boyfriend, who had already wept, watched me as I mumbled incoherently, clutching myself. "It wasn't supposed to go this way. It was supposed to be her job. She worked her whole life for the job. It's her job."

It's a privilege to be heartbroken by the system for the first time at age 30.

Thank sn R129. I went to bed early and it wasn’t called yet so far as I knew it would have been Clinton. To wake up to Trump was just an ugly ugly bday.

[quote]It wasn't supposed to go this way. It was supposed to be her job. She worked her whole life for the job. It's her job.

That’s not how it works.

I vited, went home, had dinner and went to bed. Like the rest of the world I assumed Hillary would will . I happened to wake up at 2am and I checked the results. It was like a blow to my midsection. I could not believe that peopke would vote for such a disgusting human being. That morning, as I got off the subway and started to walk to work, a man in front of me was talking on his cell. "I can't believe it! Trump is president, the Cubs won the World Series - what next!". I had to laugh.

Her loss was really embarrassing.

She lost all the important swing states. PA, OH, FL, NC, WI, MI.

All after her win being touted as “inevitable” by the out-of-touch media.

I was at the A.bbey election night viewing event — free tiny plush American Flag-themed donkeys, huge "bobblehead" Trump and Hillary characters walking around (papier mache heads).

Brought a Ukrainian friend, who makes a living as a gogo dancer, with me. He was kind of thrilled by the excitement around the election. We got dinner as we watched.

Once Florida was called for Cheeto, I had a strong feeling it was over. Too depressing. Said bye to my friend and went home.

[quote]From that point on, I decided this is all one massive hallucination that we haven't snapped out of yet.

That’s Datalounge and Hillary Clinton—and anti-Bernie Sanders—voters for you.

Well-earned.

Now, they want to repeat that in 2020.

Was working overnight with a co-worker that I don't speak too(it's mutual). We were working alone in the basement. As we watched the results on the company computer we actually talked about it and , when I finally realized that Hilary would not win even if she took every remaining state, we became silent again. He's African American and was looking at his own computer after it was called for Trump when he started talking about the people chanting "no more Jews, no more blacks, we're taking our country back", I started to tear up a little (MARY!). I think I said not everyone feels that way and it's the last time we ever said anything to each other.

I was in hysterics. I didn't pay much attention to the news coverage because I was 90%, no, make that 100% certain that Hillary was going to win. When she didn't it was hysterical. Her over wrought supporters still bring me many smiles when I watch compilation videos on YouTube. I call them the Hello Darkness My Old Friend compilations. Then what put it over the top was her inability to come out and face her supporters. The next day she gave her concession speech to donors and staff. That's our, nay, your Hillary. Laughing hysterically pretty much covers it. The fraus at work the next day were just the best.

I went to bed early and decided I would deal with things as they were in the morning. I was shocked at first but not totally surprised because of the arrogance she projected during the campaign. I voted for her.

But I’m very happy with President Trump and have since realized I’m now a republican.

The sky was so black that night...

I found out the next morning. I had to lean on the ironing table for support. My partner told me. I remember my first question was: "Did he get Pennsylvania?"

It seems totally pointless now.

Of course the electoral college is a crime against democracy.

I was suspicious that something was off and I was and still am pissed off.

I was listening to NPR and some Politico shithead said Hillary had won and I listened a little more and felt sick.

When I realized that the orange thing was actually going to the next president, I almost vomited.

Your story is deplorable OP. Don’t quit your day job.

I was so happy that we elected our first African American president! I felt that the country had really had a turning point!

I'm bringing this thread back to life because I'm still unprepared to go through the emotions of another election cycle. I think there is a funny theme in this thread that correlates to the general apathy in 2016, many of us feel asleep. The most important election we fell asleep.

I shared this before, but I attempted to watch the results in my apartment. At the time I was living with a conservative roommate. He got home first and we only had one TV so I had to endure Fox news. I remember calling it a night before FL was even called. I am always glued to the TV during election nights. Nothing looked good but I assumed Trump would win, but deep down, I think I knew Hillary was done after the Comey letter. That was THE gut punch. Sometime around 3 or 4am I woke up to check the results. I got on my laptop and saw Trump big dumb face on CNN's home screen. I wasn't shocked, because the results didn't look great when I went to bed, but I was demoralized.

I spent some time in a busy Starbucks the next day. This was a liberal leaning city in a red state, so it felt like everyone knew what everyone was talking about, but there was this unusual hush as people whispered to each other or sat quietly reading the news. Everyone I saw was pulling up news articles. Only two Republican women were speaking in a normal tone about how giddy they were about the next president. I am very thankful for the respect everyone else showed in that Starbucks as we quietly ruminated over our futures.

This time around, I just don't know how many posters will be sleeping through the 2020 results. I'm preparing myself to take this as it comes but 2016 just feels gross all around. Nothing is going to damped my resolve to get Biden into the White House.

I had been wrongfully terminated from a job two weeks before and was already in a depressed mood as I had to file complaints with the state labor department for a human rights violation. I had mailed in my absentee ballot a week before because I didn't want to put up with lines at the polls. That morning I just had the bad feeling that Trump was going to win. At times I thought my mood and feelings had to do with the job and unemployment issues that I had been dealing with.

I didn't sleep that night at all after the projection of Trump's win was announced. The next day I decided to take the bus to the unemployment agency because I didn't want to drive after not getting sleep. On the bus, I stayed calm as I listened to music on my phone. But, when I got to the agency and started talking with the case workers who had been helping me, I ended up having a small mental breakdown and I cried there. The case workers were very kind people and I remember telling them how I was fed up with shitty people like my former employers and Trump almost getting away with awful shit. I'm still embarrassed by that crying scene in the office.

Luckily, the legal action I had taken against my former employers was successful. Since then I went back to college to finish a degree and I have a good job that hasn't been effected due to Covid19. I'm also engaged to be married. However, right now with everything going on there are times I have a dreaded feeling of Trump being re-elected, but I think if that happens, I'll be in a better place to deal with it.

Wonderful story r162. Sometimes we just need to let our emotions out before we can take our next steps. Congratulations on your engagement!

I was working and listening to the radio. I’m a Canadian and I just remember the DJs kept announcing results and it looked like Trump was winning. At first they and everyone assumed Hillary would quickly catch up but as they night wore in it became clear Trump would win. I was in disbelief and sad for everybody I know in the US.