Written by Brian Li
The Election
Tuesday November 3rd, 2020, marked the date of the 59th United States Presidential Election, where unlike other years, a record breaking 151 million+ eligible voters cast their ballots — one of the highest turnouts since 1900 despite taking place amidst the COVID-19 pandemic!
Emphasis needs to be placed on how important this election was for Americans. 2020 served as a year where many internal issues within the country made headlines; amidst being the country with the highest number of COVID-19 cases, to the media presence of the Black Lives Matter movement, Americans needed to choose the best candidate between former vice-president Joe Biden or incumbent president Donald Trump to tackle these issues.
Here are some of the highlights as to why the 59th election was such a significant one:
Over 151 million people casted their votes in this election. Joe Biden won with the most votes casted for a candidate with about 79 million votes. This is a record-breaking amount of participation!
For the first time and due to the pandemic, mail-in-votes were a large factor in the Democractic victory and the large voter turnout this year.
Vice-president Kamala Harris becomes not only the first woman to be elected into the vice president position, but also the first woman of colour to do so.
President Trump becomes the first incumbent president to not be re-elected for a second term since George H. W. Bush in 1992.
Canada’s Response
While this election held great significance to Americans, it was followed globally, particularly by Canadians. The outcome of the election has many effects on Canada, as America is one of Canada’s biggest trading partners and tourism hotspots outside times of the pandemic. It is therefore safe to say that Canadians have given their fair share of what they believe is the best outcome for them.
A poll two days before the election said that 69% of Canadians surveyed believe that Biden was the better choice for the American-Canadian relationship. Trump ratings in Canada are also at an all-time low with only 20% of Canadians having confidence in him. Many Canadian politicians have also commented on who they wanted to win the election, the most prominent being Jagmeet Singh, stating that he wishes for Trump’s defeat in a November 3rd statement. Prime Minister Trudeau kept his composure and publicly stated that he is open to working with whoever American voters have chosen.
The Results In Canadian Eyes
With all the madness happening during “election week”, Canadians (and the rest of the world) have weighed in on the U.S. election. It’s safe to say that the world watched with suspense as votes were counted, day after day, past November 3rd. No one knew who the winner was going to be until the swing state of Pennsylvania was called on Saturday, November 7th, 4 days after election day. Former vice-president Joe Biden had won the election and for many Canadians, according to polls, a sigh of relief was experienced. However, president Trump has not yet conceded the election race and has shown many signs of perseverance.
Trudeau has commented that he has congratulated Joe Biden along with other big political names such as premier Doug Ford and John Horgan on there achievements. This was your update on how Canadians are reacting to the US election results.
Works Cited
Bricker, Darrell. “Seven in Ten (69%) Canadians Agree That Biden in White House Will Be Good for Canada.” Ipsos, www.ipsos.com/en-ca/news-polls/canadians-agree-biden-in-white-house-will-be-good-for-canada
“Here's How Canadians Are Reacting to the US Election Results.” Daily Hive, Daily Hive, 8 Nov. 2020, dailyhive.com/vancouver/canadians-reacting-to-the-us-election-results?auto=true.
“In Canada, One-in-Five Have Confidence in Trump.” Pew Research Center's Global Attitudes Project, Pew Research Center, 14 Sept. 2020, www.pewresearch.org/global/2020/09/15/us-image-plummets-internationally-as-most-say-country-has-handled-coronavirus-badly/pg_2020-09-15_u-s-image_0-08/.
Kommenda, Niko, et al. “US Election Results 2020: Joe Biden Wins Presidency, Defeating Donald Trump.” The Guardian, www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-interactive/2020/nov/13/us-election-results-2020-joe-biden-donald-trump-presidential-electoral-college-votes.
Porter, Catherine. “Canada Hasn't Slept Well Since the U.S. Election.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 6 Nov. 2020, www.nytimes.com/2020/11/06/world/canada/canada-reaction-us-election.html.
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