Michigan Tech University students have mixed reactions to presidential election results

HOUGHTON, Mich. (WLUC) - Students at Michigan Tech University are expressing mixed reactions to the presidential election results.

"The American public voted how it wanted to, and I just hope it voted well," said Sebastian Leblanc, a senior at MTU.

Leblanc and several students on the university's campus are weighing in on the election results. One of them is Christopher Alanis, a freshman who voted for Donald Trump.

"I feel like, when he was first president, he had a lot of good policies," Alanis said. "Things were just a lot more affordable, one being gas. Gas right now is very expensive, and me traveling to and from home from Michigan Tech, I really feel the price of that."

In the presidential race, exit polling from NBC News shows Trump picked up a larger portion of voters under 30 than any Republican presidential candidate since 2008.

In 2020, President Biden beat Trump by 11 percentage points among young men; this year, Trump beat Kamala Harris by 2 points. During the campaign, Trump was featured on many podcasts with massive followings from young Americans, and exit polls hint, that exposure paid off.

Students who voted for Kamala Harris have concerns about the upcoming administration. This includes Trent Reay, a freshman.

"Given the way Trump chooses to look at minorities such as the LGBTQ+ population and the immigrant population, I'm concerned for them," Reay said.

Similar concerns come from Cam Mcintosh, a fifth-year and LGBTQ+ student. Mcintosh says they voted for Harris because they felt it would be in their own best interests. However, they add that it's important that people remain kind to each other despite their differences.

"I know that's kind of hard in such a polarized environment," Mcintosh said. "But I feel like the biggest thing is that we are all humans, no matter who you voted for, no matter what your policies or politics may be, we're all humans and we deserve to treat each other as such."

Trump won in Houghton County, securing 58% of the vote, while Harris received 41%.