Blog.WBRU

Last night on the BRU Brief, we heard three great reports from the BRU Election News Team, an organization that is now defunct, at least for two years.  “Alt-rocking the vote” was such a catchy rallying cry, too…

First, we heard from Reiko Koyama.  There’s no doubt that Tuesday, Nov. 4, was a historic day for Americans.  Barack Obama was elected the first African American president of the United States and Democrats expanded their majority in both the House and Senate.  Three Democratic incumbents in RI, Senator Jack Reed and Congressmen James Langevin and Patrick Kennedy, were successfully reelected.  The economy, the war in Iraq, and President Bush’s low approval ratings led Obama to victory over Republican opponent John McCain.  Check out Reiko’s report below, and keep reading after the jump to hear from Maggie Lange and Jeff Bayne.

Read the rest » »

Update: Listen to George Mesthos’ report for the Pulse on the Obama election:

The Pulse airs Sundays at 10 AM during the 360° Black Experience in Sound.
—
History was made Tuesday night when the United States elected its first African-American president.

Barack Obama’s victory in the presidential election means more than just an African-American in the Oval Office. His win showed the country that race is no longer the barrier it once was, even as little as a generation ago.

Obama’s campaign was notable not only because he is black, but also because of his age (47) and the energy his campaign was able to inspire, especially with young voters.

His campaign inspired black voters to come out in record numbers. African-Americans made up about 12 or 13 percent of the total vote, a figure in line with their demographic proportions in the population as a whole. 95 percent of those votes were for Obama. Read the rest » »

Cheers have been continuing at the RI Democrats’ Election party for a good two and a half minutes, and they aren’t dying down.  The 44th President of the US has been announced and the Democrats are celebrating - their man, Barack Obama, has been elected.

People are cheering, chanting, crying - the mood is overwhelmingly positive and joyful, strangers hugging each other and laughing. The group has congealed into a community atmosphere - Representative Langevin has joined the crowd by the television to cheer, talking for several minutes to Obama supporters.  The crowd is ecstatic - the cheers of “Yes We Have” erupt spontaneously.

Barack Obama has clinched the Presidency of the United States. The first African-American to become president, he has surpassed the necessary 270 Electoral Votes. The Illinois Senator has made history, and is expected to speak in Chicago’s Grant Park soon.

–Eric Johnson

RI results are in, and it looks like the Democrats have grabbed all three contested seats.  Jack Reed will continue his tenure as Rhode Island Senator, and Patrick Kennedy and James Langevin have been reelected as State Reps.   

Jack Reed took the stage after his victory, naming health care, tax benefits for the middle class, and ending dependence on foreign oil as three of his top priorities.  “As Americans our work begins tomorrow.  We measure our success not by the success of a few, but by the opportunity for all.”  This, he said, is the foundation of the Democratic Party. 

Representative Sheldon Whitehouse tied the local with the national; “It has been an exciting, exciting day, and I think in a few hours we will see that today is not just a moment in time.  It’s a moment in history.”

Wild applause, “Obama!” chants, jazzy refrains from the live band: Hope is all around here at the Democrats’ election party.   “We have to retire ‘yes we can,’” said an event organizer,  “and change it to ‘yes you did’”

-Rachel Katz and Maggie Lange

Patrick Kennedy, the projected winner of Rhode Island’s 1st District Congressional race, says there are several things necessary for Rhode Island’s economy to improve.

Kennedy says that Referendum 1, which matches $400 million in federal money towards bridge and road repairs, is vital for Rhode Island’s response to the economic crisis.

But additional stimulus would also be required, to pump money into Rhode Island’s economy and providing jobs for Rhode Islanders.

“That’s what we needed during the great depression in the 1930s,” he said. “That’s why Franklin Roosevelt passed the Works Progress Administration. We’ve got enough infrastructure that needs to be worked on; this is the right time to do for our country, and it’s the right time to do it for our employment rate.”

-Dustin Sposato

Maria Erlick contributed to this report.

Here at the Republican party in Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse, hope for a McCain win is diminishing. With Barack Obama amassing over 200 electoral votes already, Republicans are slowly but surely filing out of this party. The candidates need 270 electoral votes to clinch the election.

“We lost,” one said.

Others grasped on to what hope they had. “I’m just trying not to look at the numbers right now. I’m really hoping that McCain can pull off a win with a final push,” said Vinny from Cranston, Rhode Island. He also said that there was a possibility that the race was not going to be decided tonight. He cited issues such as voter fraud and problems with military GI’s voting.

“I’m a realist,” Robin from Lincoln responded when asked about the results so far. “What can I do? That’s just the way it is.” She shrugged, and moved to the bar for another drink.