U.S. citizens, including those in McHenry County, voted for former President Donald Trump in the general election last Tuesday.

Polls in Illinois were opem from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. at Poll centers that matched their home street addresses.

Polling places were scattered all around the country, nearly 94 in McHenry County alone. Residents in McHenry County were encouraged to vote by their jobs including teachers, healthcare workers, union workers and more.

“I decided to vote because as a teacher, I believe it’s important to lead by example,” said a McHenry County teacher. “Voting is one of the simplest ways I can make a difference and help shape the world my students will grow up in.”

Many voters decided to vote for a variety of reasons. Voting allows people to have a voice in the government, shape policies and laws, strengthen democracy, influence local decisions and protect their Interests.

“I wanted to vote,” said a McHenry County resident, “I think voting is important because it’s a way to protect your rights, whether it’s for better healthcare, schools or the environment, everything. It’s also a way to have a chance on how things are run.”

The next day on Nov. 6, 2024 at 5:38 a.m, Trump hit 270 electoral votes and was named the 47th President of the United States by the Associated Press.

Illinois did not contribute to this, as all 19 electoral votes went to Kamala Harris. 5,328,255 votes were reported and 53.7% voted for Harris, 45.0% voted for Trump and 1.4% Robert F. Kennedy Jr. who was independent.

McHenry County was lit red on the morning of Nov. 6 with 153,982 voters. 82,199 votes counted towards Trump’s 53% while 45.0% votes counted towards Harris. Mchenry County stood out because all nearby counties were blue.

All over the nation, red overtook blue with the majority of the map being red. The shift was especially clear in the swing states, where turnout was high and support for Republicans seemed to grow.

Trump declared victory during a speech deliverd in Florida at 2:30 a.m. ET, saying he had masterminded the “greatest political movement of all time.”

“This is a movement like nobody’s ever seen before and, frankly,” Trump says, ” this was, I believe, the greatest political movement of all time. There’s never been anything like this in this country, and maybe the, and now it’s going to reach a new level of importance because we’re going to help our country heal. We’re going to help our country heal.”

In Trump’s speech he also talked about how he overcame obstacles that nobody thought would happen. “It is now clear that we’ve achieved the most incredible political thing,” Trump says. “Look what happened, is this crazy? But it’s a political victory that our country has never seen before, nothing like this.”

He later thanks the American people for voting for him to be the 47th president. He ends his speech saying “We’re going to keep our promises. Nothing will stop me from keeping my word to you, the people. We will make America safe, strong, prosperous, powerful and free again.”

After Harris’s overwhelming loss she gave a speech at Howard University in Washington, D.C. also on Nov. 6 where she thanked her family, president Biden, the first lady, her vice president Tim Walz and the campaign.

“The outcome of this election was not what we wanted, not what we fought for, not what we voted for,” said Harris. “But hear me when I say the light of America’s promise will always burn bright as long as we never give up and as long as we keep fighting.”