Last Tuesday, the election of Barack Obama captivated millions of people across America. At Quinnipiac, this fascination caught fire as students assembled at the Election Night Party in Alumni Hall. Around 150 students stopped by throughout the event.

The party, which was sponsored by the QU Democrats, was home to a mostly pro-Obama crowd, evidenced by the massive cheers Obama received when it was announced he won key swing states Ohio and Pennsylvania. Students had the opportunity to meet members of the QU Democrats and socialize with fellow students over the historic events that transpired. CNN’s live coverage was projected on a giant screen to keep the students updated on the incoming results.

Junior Class Representative Mark Bouchard, President of the QU Democrats, said he was extremely pleased with the turnout of the party, as well as the results of the election which were almost wrapped up by the end of the party.

“I feel it was a great success and I’m just very happy that studentsgot excited for this year’s election. I’m just speechless. It looks like we’re going to see a decision tonight instead of waiting a few days like
past elections,” Bouchard said.

“It just shows how well the hard work has paid off with grassroots campaigns for Obama,
specifi cally fundraising and our phone banking in Nevada,”he said.

Another member of the QU Democrats, sophomore Andrew Timothy, was patiently waiting for Obama to be declared the winner.
“The outcome is exactly as I expected it to be. I fi gured he would probably carry Ohio which was very important because of its stake in previous elections. There’s no way
he would have been able to carry the south so he would have had a very hard time after Ohio taking any of those states,” Timothy said.

“Well, I thought it would be extremely close, but Obama has a huge lead so I’m very surprised.

I’m very pleased he won New Hampshire because it’s my home state,” Sophomore Derek Stanley said.

In addition to free food, seniors T.J. Fitzpatrick and Matthew DeMello provided entertainment as they collaborated to play songs with an acoustic guitar and a piano.
One stigma Quinnipiac students have been trying to change is the image that the school
is extremely apathetic. With the results of the election party, one might gather a different perception.

Jessica Simao, a graduate student and former QU Democrat, believes the school has come very far in recent years.

“I’m so excited to see everyone out here. It was so hard to get people out in the past. We were once known as the apathetic school, but now it looks like that’s changing,”Simao
said.

It was evident that there were very few Republicans or McCain supporters in audience. However,freshman Republican Jessica Grande,appreciated the signifi cance of the event.

“This election is about people judging on the issues at hand instead of focusing on race. As a Republican, I don’t mind the results because I liked things about both candidates,” Grande said.