Hillary Clinton addresses her staff and supporters about the results of the U.S. election as her husband, former U.S. President Bill Clinton (R), their daughter Chelsea and her son in law Marc Mezvinsky look on, at a hotel in the Manhattan borough of NY, U.S., November 9, 2016.
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As her supporters waited for her in a NY ballroom, the scene of despair played out for all on live television. Referencing the secret, Clinton-supporting Facebook group Pantsuit Nation, Clinton said, “I want everyone coming out from behind that and making sure your voices are coming forward”.
The speech was much later than expected – perhaps because the Clinton team hadn’t figured defeat into their plans – and people were gearing up for a gracious speech, after what has been a trying time for her supporters. It was about building a better America.
“We’re going to get to work immediately for the American people, and we’re going to be doing a job that, hopefully, you will be so proud of your president”.
Hillary Clinton, the Democratic candidate and former secretary of state, conceded in a phone call to Trump before the speech.
The Democratic nominee for president entered the room to boisterous applause, where she was introduced by running mate Tim Kaine. Ashen-faced aides sat in the front row as supporters in the audience sobbed at the emotional event.
On the final day of the campaign, Clinton literally followed Obama to stand behind a podium with a presidential seal at a massive rally outside Independence Hall in Philadelphia.
A majority of white women chose not to vote for a potential first female president, instead siding with the Republican, who has been accused of misogyny over the course of his campaign.
Al Jazeera’s Kimberly Halkett, reporting from NY, said many Clinton supporters would find it hard to accept the result. “I know we’ve still not shattered that highest and hardest glass ceiling, but some day someone will”. “I wanted her to experience this”, Toon said around 10 p.m. on Tuesday night. But finally, he took a breath and introduced Hillary Clinton.
Reflecting on the constitutional tradition of the transfer of power between political enemies, Clinton called on supporters to be accepting of Trump as president and allow him the chance to succeed. But she told her faithful to accept Trump and the election results, urging them to give him “an open mind and a chance to lead”. “I think that [the idea of a women president soon] shows a very profound lack of understanding of what it has taken a woman to get within striking distance of the presidency”. “Now it’s time for America to bind the wounds of division”.
Of that, Trump was seen as leading for a total of just eight days, according to Real Clear Politics data: from May 22 to May 25, when he topped Hillary Clinton by 0.2 points, and again from July 25 to July 28. “Let us not grow weary.Let us not lose heart, for there are more seasons to come, and there is more work to do”, said Clinton before leaving the stage.
Other than that, we have to go way back to 1888 when William Henry Harrison lost the vote but won the election.
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We hope, on this new morning, that our new president will be something greater – and something less risky – than he’s shown us thus far.
