Long Islanders react with elation, dread, to the election of Donald Trump as president

Long Islanders woke Wednesday, after the reelection of Donald Trump, to a new era in American democracy, a dawn some greeted joyously and some with dread. 

"I’m happy that Trump won," said Benjamin Ashkenazi, of Cedarhurst, coming off the Long Island Rail Road in Grand Central Madison. "We saw what happened in the four years of the Biden administration ... We believe in Trump."

Alexandria Well, 33, of Ronkonkoma, who works in women's health care and was walking her dog near the LIRR station in Ronkonkoma, said the election results confirmed some long-standing doubts she had about her fellow Americans: "I figured ... if there was a way that we could mess it up, that we would," she said. "I'm not surprised that this is how we've shown that we value women and their bodies and their lives."

Trump, who has promised to remake government in America and seek revenge against those he sees as his enemies, appeared to have won both Suffolk and Nassau counties, according to unofficial election figures. Unofficial results from the boards of election indicated he carried Suffolk County with 55.01% to 44.16% margin and Nassau by a 51.79% to 46.96% margin. 

Some Trump voters said immigration and the economy had weighed heavily in their choice. In Bay Shore, James Brown who voted for Trump in 2016 and 2020, called Vice President Kamala Harris “responsible” for what some have described as chaos at the nation's southern border, and said that under the current administration, Americans were “hurting” economically.

“Gas went to almost $4 a gallon, and all the groceries followed suit,” said Brown, 81, adding that he hoped Trump would be “very open minded and accept everybody’s views” in a politically polarized nation. 

At Long Island universities Wednesday, some students said the election had heightened concerns over climate change, civil rights and access to abortion. Many of those interviewed said they were worried about changes a second Trump administration would bring; a few said they were optimistic. 

Stony Brook University sophomores Naomi Ford, 19, of Connecticut, and Tolani Balogun, 18, said Trump's win over Kamala Harris, who is, like them, a Black woman, left them worried about their own prospects. 

“It’s kind of more of a slap in the face just because of who he was up against. It just seems like the United States would do anything to not have someone who's black and a woman be in a position of power,” Ford said.

They also worried about the future of a country guided by a man was impeached twice and convicted last spring of felony charges in a scheme to illegally influence the 2016 election through a hush money payment to an adult film star. 

“If you've already seen all the stuff that he's done, why do you feel like you need to touch the fire to know that it's hot?” Balogun said.

At Hofstra University, near Nassau Coliseum where a Trump rally took place in September, Madeline Widlund, a TV production major from Staten Island, said the mood on campus Wednesday felt "off... Everyone had their heads down and it was definitely a different feeling than usual." She was "definitely concerned with women and our rights,” she said. 

Ayal Tzur, from Brooklyn, said Trump's win made for an "emotional sting" and roused his concerns over LGBTQ rights. But Tzur also said the interactions he'd had with Trump supporters when he'd covered the rally gave him reason for hope.

"You have different political views but you can still have a civil conversation,” he said.

Caroline Coyne, an English major from Lloyd Harbor, said she was trying to "remain positive and happy." She had voted for the first time, she said, and hoped "things will get better" under the new administration.

Back at the Ronkonkoma LIRR station, George Romero, 30, of Hauppauge, said he hoped a second Trump administration would jump-start the economy. "The economy is really what drew me to vote for him," said Romero, who voted for Joe Biden in 2020. 

At Grand Central Madison, Ricardo Rodriguez, an immigrant from Ecuador, said he was pleasantly surprised Trump won. Rodriguez, who came to the United States two years ago, lives in Brooklyn and works on Long Island.

"I hope the new president makes good decisions for the country and for immigrants," Rodriguez said. "I’m an immigrant also so I hope he makes the best decision for the country."

Lisa Williams, of Floral Park, said she was disappointed by the outcome and surprised by Trump's performance with Latino voters. "I figured with his rhetoric and his comments," that it would not go in Trump’s favor, she said.

At Penn Station, James Doyle, of East Meadow, who works in construction, said he was "happy with the results." Trump has said he would curtail immigration, and Doyle worried that an influx of migrants had negatively impacted his industry and could make it hard for his children to find work.

In Ronkonkoma, Shawn Scallon, 42, of Holbrook, said he was still taking in the election results and "letting it settle and seeing what the future looks like." Scallon declined to say whom he voted for, but said he hoped all sides would respect the electoral process.

But Will Peiser, 69, of Floral Park, Queens, said the future looked bleak. "I went straight down the line, Democrat, which is something I didn't used to do, but nowadays, no Republicans," he said. "Here we go, four more years of chaos, that’s all I’m thinking," he said.