Campus Center, usually loud and lively with conversation, was quiet on the morning of Nov. 6 as students processed the results of the presidential election.
At 5:35 a.m. that morning, the Associated Press reported that Donald Trump was elected the 47th president of the United States, having called Wisconsin and its 10 electoral votes for the former president, pushing him over the 270-vote threshold for victory.
The AP called Massachusetts for Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee, seconds after polls closed with 0% of precincts reporting. With the votes counted, Harris won more than 60% of the statewide vote and more than 75% in Suffolk County.
Voters approved Questions 1-3, statewide ballot initiatives to allow the state auditor to audit the legislature, eliminate the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System as a high school graduation requirement and allow ride-share drivers to unionize. They rejected initiatives that would have legalized certain psychedelic substances and raised the minimum wage for tipped workers to $15 per hour by 2029.
During his campaign, Trump railed against immigrants — including those who are in the country legally with temporary protected status — and pledged mass deportations. In the fall of last year, UMass Boston was home to students from 136 countries, according to a report from the office of institutional research, assessment and planning.
In the days after the election, the UMass Boston Counseling Center hosted events for students to reflect on the election, and fliers with mental health and crisis resources, including the national suicide prevention hotline, were displayed around campus.
Governor Maura Healey said in an interview on MSNBC that the state will not assist federal authorities in enforcing mass deportation policies. “Every tool in the toolbox has got to be used to protect our citizens, to protect our residents and protect our states, and certainly to hold the line on democracy and the rule of law,” she said.
Democrat Elizabeth Warren handily won reelection to the U.S. Senate; her race was also called before any votes were counted. Democrats swept the commonwealth’s delegation to the U.S. House of Representatives. However, Republicans won narrow control in both houses, 53-47 in the Senate and 218-212 in the House, with 4 districts not yet called.
Republicans’ lead in the Senate is enough to confirm many of Trump’s nominees to the federal bench and to lead agencies and departments, requiring a simple majority, but they do not have the 60% necessary to overcome the filibuster and pass legislation without Democratic support. The party’s lead may further shrink as the president-elect names cabinet and ambassador picks, many of whom are members of Congress who will have to resign before taking roles in the executive branch.
At the state level, Democrats maintained strong control in both houses of the Massachusetts General Court, 36-4 in the Senate and 132-24 in the House. They also won all eight seats on the Governor’s Council, which “provides advice and consent on gubernatorial appointments, pardons and commutations, and warrants for the state treasury,” the body’s website states.
This article appeared in print on Page 4 of Vol. LVIII Issue VII, published Nov. 18, 2024.
