AMERICA HAS ANSWERED
Eric Ludy
Issue date: 11/5/08 Section: Online
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Just after 10 p.m. on Tuesday night, UMD students watching CNN in the Multi-Cultural lounge could sense they were witnessing a once-in-a-lifetime event.
"We just made history," yelled Dirimy Angeneko, "we're gonna be in textbooks!"
The results were in: Barack Obama would be the next president of the United States.
In an election that's one for the history books, Obama defeated Sen. John McCain and will become the first African American president of the United States upon inauguration on Jan. 20.
Students watching in the lounge, most of whom were members of A Massive Organization Embracing Benevolent Attitude (AMOEA), hugged and jumped up and down, shouting "Obama! Obama! He did it!" Some had tears in their eyes.
Some students called loved ones on cell phones.
"Mom, we just made history," one student said into her phone.
In addition to his national electoral majority, Obama took the UMD campus precinct, or Precinct 10, by a margin of over 2 to 1, or 1,684 votes for Obama to McCain's 786, out of a total of 2,448 ballots cast.
In addition to Obama's victory, the DFL won majorities down the ballot out of the UMD students and community members voting at the UMD Ballroom.
Senatorial candidate Al Franken took the most votes at Precinct 10 in his extremely close race with Sen. Coleman for U.S. Senate, garnering 1,104 votes to Sen. Norm Coleman's 932 and former Sen. Dean Barkley's 344.
Statewide, with 100% of the precincts reporting, Norm Coleman is currently ahead by an unofficial margin of just a few hundred votes, with he and Franken both garnering 42% of the vote. Franken, however, has decided that he will exercise his right for a recount, according to the Star Tribune.
Rep. Jim Oberstar (DFL) won by a large margin in Precinct 10, taking 1,427 votes to challenger Michael Cummins' (R) 745.
Oberstar, who has been representing the 8th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives since 1974, took the rest of the state easily with 68% of the votes to Cummins' 32%.
A proposed amendment to the Minnesota State Constitution to add a tax for outdoors and arts programs won a wide margin of voters in Precinct 10, with 83%, or 1,905 voters voting yes, and 17%, or 391 voters voting no. The amendment passed on the state level, 59% to 41%.
Voters in the city of Duluth voted to keep funding for the Duluth School District at current levels, voting in favor of the first level of the levy, or $365 per pupil, by 65% to 35%. Voters rejected both additional levy questions, opting not to increase school funding to $700 per pupil or $1200 per pupil.
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