As the votes poured in last night, the results took a turn the nation did not expect: a shattered victory for Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton after Republican candidate Donald Trump secured the 270 electoral votes needed to win the presidential elect. Contrary to major polling data in battleground states like Ohio, Michigan and Pennsylvania, all of which projected a victory for Clinton, the red-dominated voting results revealed Trump as the future president of the United States.

Trump won the state of Wisconsin by a projected 1 percentage point compared to state polls saying Clinton was leading by upwards of 8 points in the days previous.

“I think it is amazing how Trump won Wisconsin,” junior Kristian Huber said. “It shows that his reach and message was strong enough to flip many, not only historically blue states, but also Obama states from 2008 and 2012.”

The hard push of Clinton’s “Blue Wall”, which consisted of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania, displayed an easy prevention of Trump’s supportive outcome. These select states acted as safety spots for the Clinton campaign in case she lost states like Florida and Ohio, which were the first two battleground states to be called by CNN, both won by Trump.

Public opinion is split among most American voters after this election. The gaps between generations, genders and race are prime examples of this deep divide in American culture. According to CNN exit polls updated last at 3:06 AM ET, Clinton won 55 percent of voters under the age of 30 and Trump won 53 percent of voters in both the 45-65 age group and the 65 and older age group. Trump won 53 percent of males while Clinton won 54 percent of females. The most staggering statistic in these exit polls were that Trump won 58 percent of the white vote and Clinton won 74 percent of the non-white vote.

Third party candidates Jill Stein and Gary Johnson pulled a combined 5 million votes, breaking expectations and the spirits of many hopeful Clinton voters. Johnson took shocking percentages in key battleground states, creating a pathway for impact of independents on future political policy.

The election ended with Trump holding onto 290 electoral votes and a 47.5 popular vote and Clinton trailing behind with 228 electorates and a popular vote of 47.7 percent.

This is the second time in the last 5 elections that the president elect did not secure the majority vote of Americans. The last time this event took place was in the 2000 election with Democratic candidate Al Gore winning the popular vote but Republican candidate George W. Bush being sworn into office after sweeping in the electorates. With 40 percent of the last 5 elections ending in loss of the popular vote, many Americans continue to question the fundamental systems of our government.

“I think it is a big joke,” senior Lena Slater said. “If we want to get anywhere near the accomplishments of other countries, we need to come together as one.”

While President-Elect Donald J. Trump is to be sworn into office on January 20, 2017, it is still up in the air as to what direction the United States will take in the next four years.