Both presidents of Syracuse University’s College Republicans and College Democrats said they were happy with the results of the midterm elections and proud of younger generations for voting.

A day after the Democrats took control of the United States House of Representatives, College Democrats President Andres Victoria said he was glad that the House went blue. College Republicans President Domenic Biamonte said he was excited the GOP maintained the Senate, and Rep. John Katko (R-Camillus) kept Syracuse in New York’s 24th Congressional District.

College Republicans, which has 20 to 50 active members, and College Democrats, which has about 35 active members, both were politically involved in the recent midterm elections.

“As much as I would’ve liked to keep the House, I like to see my generation vote,” Biamonte said. “I like to see my generation active in the political system because eventually we’ll be the ones holding the reins.”

Biamonte said that he was most excited about the number of young people that voted in the midterm elections. He added that while he was disappointed about the House flip, which was expected, he thinks it was not the “blue wave” that Democrats were predicting. The College Republicans president said that the group had been preparing for the worst and hoping for the best.

Victoria said he thinks activism on social media, such as Twitter and Instagram, drove a lot of millennials to the polls. Those votes make a difference and young people’s voices matter, Victoria said. Both Biamonte and Victoria said they think President Donald Trump inspired people to vote, specifically with the “anti-Trump” vote.

“I think this generation is going to make a lot of change,” Victoria said. “I think, right behind baby boomers, we’re about to be the biggest voting block in the country so I’m very excited to see this generation’s passions translates into legislators coming into office.”

Locally, Katko defeated Democratic challenger Dana Balter by about six points, which was less than polls predicted. Biamonte said he and many other College Republicans had worked on Katko’s campaign and were happy to see him win.

Victoria, whose club hosted Balter on campus for a public Q&A in October, said he was disappointed that the candidate lost the election, but is hopeful for the House overall because of the majority that Democrats won.

“I’m hoping that we’re able to keep this energy going,” Victoria said. “As great as it is that we have the House now, we still could use the Senate one day.”

Victoria said that politics are getting more personal, but the 2018 elections were not as heated as the 2016 elections. He said he thinks attacking opponents will be the new norm in politics. Biamonte agreed and said these elections were dirtier, specifically with the use of attack ads, than previous midterm elections.

Biamonte said he hopes elections will get more civil in the future. Victoria said he hopes candidates will be more positive.

Both clubs worked on campus phone-banking, door-knocking and registering people to vote. They both hosted events to talk about local candidates and how to get their messages across to other people, specifically on SU’s campus.

College Republicans and College Democrats alike are both hopeful for progress in their respective parties in the future and to hold majorities in their respective congressional chambers.

“I think our next steps will be do what we’ve always done,” Biamonte said. “Discuss policy, see where we agree, where we disagree, see what’s working, see what isn’t.”

Published on November 7, 2018 at 11:08 pm

Contact Catherine: ccleffer@syr.edu | @ccleffert