Cleveland in shock after Ohio swings to Trump

Donald Trump won the US presidential election with a massive 52.1 percent of the votes against Clinton’s 43.5 percent in swing state Ohio. Trump supporters celebrated statewide, but in Cleveland, a Democratic stronghold, people woke up to an icy, new reality.

Cleveland, Ohio RFI/Jan van der Made

The temperature in Cleveland dropped 10 degrees in one day on Wednesday and the almost spring-like weather that had warmed the town until 8 November turned chilly.

“The day has dawned. The day after the elections. We’re all here,” says August Napoli, a serious-looking elderly man in a raincoat and wearing thick-rimmed glasses who is on his way to his office. “We are all coming to do our jobs and do our work and the country will move on. That’s the great thing about democracy.”

When he woke up, Napoli says, he “felt that the American system worked. The people spoke, they voted and the people are getting what the majority of the people decided they wanted.”

He was not “disappointed in the American way” of carrying out politics. “This is what democracy is all about,” he says.

Urban areas in Ohio are predominantly Democrat. According to the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections figures, Clinton won Cleveland with a massive 65.2 percent, Trump winning only 30.5 percent.

This made the surprise about the final outcome among city dwellers even bigger.

“Shocking,” says Brian, who is about to catch the metropolitan bus. “I don’t know what to make of it. I was surprised, I was amazed. I didn’t expect Trump to win. It was different.

Then again, in Ohio it can go either way, he points out.

“Except for the major metropolitan areas, that tend to be a little more Democratic, but the rural areas, the semi-rural areas, they are more Republican, conservative.

“I did a lot of travelling around the state and saw a lot of Trump-Pence signs but if you hit Cleveland, Cincinnati, Columbus, I saw a lot of more Clinton and Kaine signs.”

Some Clevelanders are plainly devastated.

“I’m heartbroken,” says Lisa, while protecting her face from the icy wind with her hand.
“When I woke up I thought that my country is going to be destroyed. I don't know what is going to happen now.

“We are going to have dirtier air, a more unsafe place, a more hostile country, I don’t know what is going to be good. I am very worried.”

But there are Trump supporters in Cleveland.

“I am a small business owner. I had to lay off a couple of people. But now I hope with Trump as president, things may change,” says Tom, who is jogging along Euclid Avenue, one of the main arteries of Cleveland. He is happy with the outcome.

And gun owners in Cleveland are overjoyed. “I’m glad,” says Adam, a gunsmith. “I’m a Republican, that’s why I’m glad that Trump won. I expected it.”

He hopes Trump will make life for gun owners and producers easier. “You know the gun bans and stuff, it would not be as strict under Trump as it would be under Hillary. And hopefully the Americans can keep their Second Amendment [which guarantees the right to bear arms].”

But Adam expects more from Trump than just fighting for gun rights.

“The next four years I’m hoping the economy will grow and our country will kind of come back together, be more united than it was in the last eight years," he says. "I believe Trump sincerely wants to do what is good for the country.”

Not everyone is aware of the election outcome.

“I don’t know yet who won,” says Ben, who hadn’t checked the morning news.

His response when told?

“Trump? Then we’re in trouble,” he said.

To read our coverage of this year's US presidential election click here