By Valeria Bula
The days have been counting down to the moment in which the next President of the United States is elected. Now, Election Day is tomorrow and Clinton and Trump are hosting the last of their rallies and supporters remain animated, participating in campaigns and rallies to support their candidate. Among those prominent supporters is our current President, Barack Obama.
On Nov. 3, thousands of people attended the last of Obama’s support rallies for Clinton in South Florida at Florida International University where he encouraged voters to get out and vote.
The crowd waited patiently for hours in line and then in FIU’s stadium, proudly waving signs bearing the words “Stronger Together” or “Millennials for Clinton” in the air, for the arrival of their beloved Commander-in-Chief, releasing an uproar of cheers and applause when he entered.
President Obama encouraged all those able to vote to do so: he provided a nearby location which those who wish to vote could easily attend and he described voting as being pivotal to conserving democracy and ensuring that a qualified president is selected.
“Five more days to decide the future,” Obama told the young crowd, many of whom are voting for the first time. “The good news is that you don’t have to wait for Election Day to vote.”
Five days have winded down to one; the stakes are higher than ever before.
Appealing to the Hispanic and Millennial population of South Florida, voters saw a more personal side of Obama as he went off script during his 45 minute speech. He went on to criticize Donald Trump, Marco Rubio, and the Republican party in general, trumping the assumptions made of him when he first entered presidency and describing the accomplishments of the Democratic party.
“Donald Trump is uniquely unqualified to be President…He is temperamentally unfit to be Commander in Chief…And as Hillary points out, anybody that you can bait with a tweet is not someone you can trust with nuclear weapons,” Obama said.
Voicing his support for Patrick Murphy, the Democratic senatorial candidate for Florida, who also attended the event, Obama encouraged voters to select Murphy on the ballot.
“If you want a senator who will show up and work for you, and have some integrity, and has some consistency, and will actually say what he thinks and what he means and then act on that, somebody you have confidence in — then you should vote for Patrick Murphy,” he said.
The President also went on to prompt voters to not only vote early, but make the right choice in voting for Hillary Clinton.
“Fairness is on the ballot. Decency is on the ballot. Justice is on the ballot. All the progress we’ve made is on the ballot. Immigration reform is on the ballot. A higher minimum wage is on the ballot. Equal pay for equal work is on the ballot. Democracy is on the ballot. Hillary Clinton will move us forward if you give her a chance. And if we win Florida, we will win this election, and it’s in your hands,” he finished.
