Donald Trump is poised to be the next president of the United States, bringing to an end an election that was framed as a stark choice between tyranny and democracy.
But on the ground, it seems far more nuanced. In the days leading up to November 6, I spoke to people across Washington, DC, each navigating a web of daily struggles, concerns and aspirations that resist simple categorisation. Many are deeply divided, torn between a party that embodies a disturbing embrace of racial and economic hierarchy, and another that speaks a language of inclusivity and justice but often fails to live up to those ideals.
The result, therefore, isn’t a simple binary. It’s a complex landscape where voters weigh promises against realities, values against pragmatism.
In America’s capital city, I found a population that, while outwardly warm and friendly, often keeps interactions with strangers at a cordial but superficial level. The exception to this pattern were the handful of immigrants who engaged with me with awareness, clarity and a sense of despair. This dialogue offered me a window into the ways in which those outside the mainstream perceive the nation’s promises and contradictions.
In a city seen as a liberal bubble, nearly all the immigrants I spoke with had decided to vote for Donald Trump. Their reasons varied, yet a common theme emerged – a weariness with the prevailing political orthodoxy which, in their view, had fallen short of addressing their hopes and ambitions.
To them, Trump represented a stark alternative, a departure from the established order that had, over time, fostered a sense of disillusionment.