On college campuses across the country last week, the bubbling excitement of Election Day quickly gave way to an eerie quiet. Students shuffled to class and talked in small groups, reckoning with Donald Trump’s sweeping victory. Teen Vogue dispatched student photojournalists in the swing states of Michigan, Nevada, and Pennsylvania — all of which ultimately went to Trump — to document how their peers were responding to the 2024 election results. What struck them most was the lack of protests. Trump’s 2016 win saw major protests nationwide, but the reaction this time has, so far, been more muted.
“All that could be heard were footsteps,” Nick Stewart, who documented election week at the University of Nevada, Reno, told Teen Vogue. “I wonder if students are just feeling kind of shocked right now and are still processing their feelings.”
Here’s what election week looked like through the eyes of students at the University of Michigan, the University of Nevada, Reno, and The Pennsylvania State University.
"Given the steady number of gatherings and protests at local spots throughout the past year, there was a surprising lack of any activist response in the days following the election results. [The university's] Allen Street Gates, which had overflowed with voting organizations and campaign tables in the days prior, was suddenly and completely vacant for most of the day after Trump was elected president. By the afternoon, a small handful of his supporters were celebrating in the space where dozens of Harris signs once stood.
“I had conversations with many students who shared feelings of disconnection and fear. One student, Ashley, said something that especially stood out to me: She felt a loss of trust in this community, she explained, and that people don’t see each other with empathy — which is perhaps reflective of a broader sentiment expressed by many. On the other hand, a few students I talked to expressed excitement and hopefulness for the coming years.”
“I'm definitely pretty sad. I'm a little worried for vulnerable people.… I'm just hoping for the best, and see if I can continue to do my part.”
“I'm feeling very hopeful now that the election is over. I'm very excited to see how things turn around now.”
"Throughout the past few months (and even years), students have been aware of the importance of their vote in a swing stage. Out-of-state students changed their voting registration, there were multiple visits from the Harris-Walz and Trump-Vance campaigns, and regularly occurring events that encouraged students to register and vote.
"On Election Day, the University of Michigan campus transformed from anxious, in the early hours, to hopeful and calm as the last student voted at 8:30 p.m.
"By the next morning, the normally lively campus was empty, and there was a feeling of weariness hanging in the air. Students who did come to campus felt disengaged from their classes and peers. Many did not want to discuss their feelings and went about their day as best as possible. Those who did feel open to sharing expressed shock over how the young demographic in Michigan was [looking], some even feeling betrayed by their peers who may have voted for Trump. There was frustration with how the election unfolded, but there was also hope that this could be a learning opportunity looking toward the 2026 midterms.
"For those upset by the election’s outcome, these were heavy and sad days; most students knew people who stayed home from classes out of disappointment. There was also some celebration as fireworks were heard going off in off-campus housing in the early hours of Wednesday morning.
“Covering this election has been momentous here in Michigan. Especially with so many students and Ann Arbor residents involved with different campaigns and having differing views. In the wake of an already turmoil-filled year, students are exhausted, downtrodden, and overwhelmed. Yet there was still an expression of hope and resiliency for the future.”
“I was a bit shocked and very disappointed. I knew this election could go either way, but I had more faith in Michigan, specifically, and a few more swing states to go for Kamala Harris.
“I felt a little bit helpless, like now I don’t know what to do. I worked here at the UMMA, I’ve canvassed, I’ve knocked on doors, and a lot of people I know have done that stuff too.”
Olivia: “I think it’s different [than in 2016] because there was a lot of momentum. I think it’s also different for us because [Ian] would have been in seventh and I would have been in eighth grade when Hillary lost. So that was, like, my start in politics — the 2016 election. I knew I was angry and I knew kind of why, but I didn’t understand the policy implications, and now that we have Project 2025 and stuff like that, I think it makes it more scary and more real.”
Ian: “My brother is transgender and he’s a freshman in college, so last year when he was looking for colleges there were a lot of colleges that he wanted to go to that he couldn’t because he didn’t feel safe in those states…. This is more existentially scary. He posted something on his Snapchat story yesterday and he goes, ‘When does moving to Ireland not become a joke?’ And that’s just terrifying.”
Olivia: “I’m visually impaired, and I’m a woman. I’m very passionate about women’s issues and disability issues and, as a student, really passionate about disability access and education. So having a president who wants to defund the Department of Education, get rid of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and the way that it works is really scary. I would not be where I am today without that law.”
Ian: “I feel like we grew up thinking this country is the place where people come to be free and I think that’s still true, but I never thought that this would be the old country that people would be escaping and leaving behind. But who knows what’s gonna happen?”
Olivia: “Campus Dems and students for Harris here have formed this community over this process because we’re together all the time as a group. And these are people that have become my best friends, and all these people are so passionate. Then you add in all the volunteers, you add the voters, you add in all the people on the campaign and, just in Ann Arbor alone, we all know each other. It’s a big community. It’s comforting to know that there are so many people who feel the same way and are sad about this. But it is also concerning that there are so many people — enough for him to win — that they don't.”
“It was quite nerve-wracking and terrifying… trying to exist being a regular college student and then trying to see the election result come in.
“I woke up. It was 5:00 a.m., and I started crying. The first person I called was my dad, and he was like, ‘It’s gonna be okay. The good thing about democracy is that it works, and you have to just trust the system. You have power. You’re not going to lose power and not overnight. This is just a reminder that you have to keep fighting no matter what.’ And it was really hard.
“I am not happy with who won the presidential election, and I’m allowed to, you know, feel that way, but I respect the institutions that made that happen.
“We’ve still got a lot of races, and I’m looking at the little races, local and state elections, and those are all the wins — the little wins. I’m trying to focus on the little wins…. Watching the races that I care about, at home, the people I’ve supported, they're winning different policies across the state of Michigan.
“While I am disappointed, this is all a part of the process, and once we lose faith, that’s when we actually lose.”
Audrey, 21
“I think [Harris] had a very specific and special message for young people to keep fighting, because she knows that many of us are impatient for change. And, you know, her slogan for a lot of the campaign has been, ‘When we fight, we win.’ We didn't win this one, but that doesn't mean that we're not going to win the bigger fight for progress. So, for me, it's all about looking towards 2026. That starts today. Thinking about what kind of soul searching the Democratic Party needs to do to identify why we're losing some of these young voters.”
“Truthfully, I’m terrified. I’m shocked that sexual assault, fraud, and constant bullying was not a dealbreaker to the majority of America. I’m disappointed more than anything, but I will continue to fight alongside women and minorities who feel insulted and threatened by [Trump’s] power.
"Rather than teaching our daughters that they can achieve their dreams, America has taught our sons that they can mistreat, lie, abuse, and still become the most powerful person in the country.
"I watched the election in a room filled with young women. We were shocked and confused, angry and frightened. But we were together, and we knew that we would continue to care for each other, no matter what happens next.”
"The feeling on campus at the University of Nevada, Reno, was actually quite eerie. The morning after Election Day, there were students going to class as normal, but the normal conversations that would be taking place as students walk with each other were not happening. All that could be heard were footsteps.
"I think the most surprising part for me was that there were no rallies or any kind of gathering after the election. I wonder if students are just feeling kind of shocked right now and are still processing their feelings.
“It felt really important to be covering Nevada, a swing state, in this election. I've never seen voter turnout on my campus the way that I have on Election Day. Overall, the young voters I heard from were generally disappointed about the election. The difference in reactions was that some students were shocked about the results while others were not surprised at all.”
“I really want to see how it’s going to play out with the men and the woman who decided to vote for Trump, even though they know undocumented people, they have undocumented individuals in their family."
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