Election Day is over, but politics are not.
At 7 p.m. Tuesday, polls started closing and Americans tuned into results through TVs at home, victory parties at restaurants, and radio stations in cars all over the country. But in Miami-Dade, many voters were still in line.
Two days after the election, the Sunshine State shines yellow with a few votes still to count. Although many Mitt Romney supporters came out to cast their ballots, supporters of President Barack Obama seemed more determined. This was evident in the popular vote and in the vote that ultimately matters – the Electoral College.
As of 11 p.m. Tuesday night, Obama was re-elected president of the United States without Florida’s 29 electoral votes. And even if the state ultimately leaned red, it was improbable for Romney to take the lead.
During the last six months, both Obama and Romney were motivated and fought hard to win – their campaigns were strong, vigorous and expensive.
In the end, America spoke. And Obama was the country’s answer.
Whether you consider yourself a conservative or a liberal, Obama will be our commander-in-chief for the next four years. His rules will have to be followed.
Every president has made mistakes; it is inevitable – encrypted in our DNA as human beings.
We must look ahead to the future, not behind at the past.
In a poll conducted by The Miami Hurricane in late September, students on campus emphasized the importance of some issues. Of the nearly 300 individuals who voted, 48 percent said the economy was the most important issue, 13 percent said the budget, 10 percent said college debt and 9 percent said gay rights. Other topics that interested students were energy and the environment, abortion, foreign debt and immigration.
This is not the time to doubt Obama’s plans or promises. This is the time to remember that, as a country, we strive to be a nation that stands on life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness regardless of which party is in control of the White House.
We need to stand behind him as he prepares to take charge in January when he is inaugurated as our president for the second time. We must also remember that we are not taking sides, but uniting as Americans.
It is time to prove to the rest of the world why the U.S. is the greatest country in the world, divided or not.
Editorials represent the majority view of The Miami Hurricane editorial board.