Shortly
afterwards, Clinton called Trump to concede but did not make a public
address.
Trump
left Trump Tower for the short journey to the Hilton Midtown, where
the president-elect then took to the stage and said, “I will deal
fairly with everyone. Sorry to keep you waiting, complicated
business, complicated business. I have just received a call from
Secretary Clinton.
“She
congratulated us – it’s about us and our victory – and I
congratulated her on a very hard fought campaign. Now it is time for
Americans to bind the wounds of division. It is time for us to become
together as one united people. I pledge to every citizen of our land
that I will be president for all Americans.”
Volatility and a common touch
But
the mood in the Trump camp shifted early after signs of a strong
performance in Florida and Clinton supporters began contemplating the
consequences of a result few thought was possible.
At
a “victory party” for Clinton supporters, under the veil of a
glass ceiling that was meant to be an epic symbol of a historic night
when gender barriers were swept aside, there was bleak mood.
Thousands
of people who filled the Jacob
Javits convention center in
midtown Manhattan – and the thousands more lining the blocks
outside – had eyes glued to the TV. A woman clasped her hands over
her mouth in disbelief as the newscasters announced Trump had won
North Carolina.
The
mood dropped markedly as results began to roll in: Ohio, Florida,
North Carolina, all for Trump. Outside the Javits Center at the
so-called “block party”, a couple embraced. The woman wiped a
tear from her face and the man stroked her hair.
Another man, who identified himself only by his first name, Theo, called the results “scary and troubling”. “You don’t think there could be so much hate in this country – there is.”
Another man, who identified himself only by his first name, Theo, called the results “scary and troubling”. “You don’t think there could be so much hate in this country – there is.”
After
Podesta spoke, a stream of stunned supporters, some in block-colored
pantsuits, others toting tired children, many wiping tears from their
eyes, exited the building that was meant to be a symbol of barriers
broken.
“What
happened? What did we just do?” asked Gloria Lowell, the mother of
an adopted son from Guatemala.
Staffers
hugged each other and wiped tears from their eyes. They had prepared
for this outcome – but no one truly believed it.
Susie
Shannon traveled from California to be at the Javits Center on
Tuesday night so that her eight-year-old daughter, Gracie, could say
she was there when Hillary Clinton was elected president.
They
left the center in the early hours of Wednesday morning stunned.
“We
waited for hours to come here tonight,” she said in shock, holding
her daughters hands. “I wish Clinton herself had come out and
spoken to us. It would have been nice to hear from her.”
Meanwhile,
the crowd at Trump’s watch party in the midtown Hilton grew
increasingly excited as the evening went on. Loud cheers erupted
every time that returns from Florida and Ohio were shown on the
television screen. The mood grew increasingly optimistic as attendees
huddled anxiously around their televisions clasping their drinks and
their cellphones in equally tight grips.
Many
shouted “lock her up” when Clinton’s name was mentioned and
berated members of the media for being slow to report election
results.
Exit
polling by CNN suggested 88% of voters had made up their minds more
than than week ago, before last minute FBI inquiries into Clinton’s
emails temporarily raised fears of a late Trump surge.
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