Several campus and local political organizations hosted parties where students gathered to watch the results of the U.S. midterm elections on Tuesday. The Texan sent reporters to cover the night’s standout events.
Annette Strauss Institute for Civic Life
Hundreds of students packed a University auditorium to watch midterm election results pour in at a watch party hosted by the Annette Strauss Institute for Civic Life, with help from volunteers from TX Votes, a student-run voter outreach organization housed under the institute.
Over 700 individuals attended the nonpartisan event at the Dealey Center for New Media at the Moody College of Communication Tuesday night.
Attendees included a mix of adults and students, along with prominent guests such as Travis County Judge Andy Brown, Moody Dean Cary Granat and former Texas House Speaker Dennis Bonnen.
Government senior Jaden Watt, the Student Government vice president, spoke at the event and said the watch party aimed to foster civic engagement among voters.
“(Civic engagement) is an ongoing and active cycle that we choose to participate in,” Watt said. “This isn’t really just to spread awareness about the election that’s happening right now. It’s so that people who didn’t get an opportunity to be civically engaged this time see the importance of doing it next time.”
The party began at 7 p.m., and event organizers reserved an extra room to handle overflow. An hour after the event started, both rooms hit capacity.
Mark Strama, the director of the Annette Strauss Institute for Civic Life, said TX Votes, which had volunteers at the event, trains students to be discerning in their study of media.
“If I try to teach (students) anything, it’s to teach them to be media literate, media savvy and be able to read between the lines of the news coverage and know what’s really happening, what’s motivating the political behaviors that they’re observing,” Strama said.
As polls favoring Democrats rolled in, former state Rep. Larry Gonzales, R-Round Rock, who also spoke at the party, gave a message to candidates awaiting their campaign results.
“To my Republican friends who lose tonight, lose with grace,” Gonzales said. “To my Democrat friends who win tonight, win with grace, because we’re all in it going together. Going forward, we’re all in it together. Going forward, we still have to run this place, and we still have to make Texas great. We’re still going to succeed here, and we’re going to do it working together.”
Turning Point USA
Over two hours, approximately 13 guests came and went from conservative political organization Turning Point’s midterms watch party in the Eastwoods Room at the Texas Union on Tuesday night.
Turning Point USA at UT teaches students the “importance of free market and other conservative values through well-planned, effective activism initiatives,” according to the chapter’s Hornslink.
The event began at 6:30 p.m. with a screen showing conservative media outlet The Daily Wire’s live coverage of the polls, focusing on the Texas U.S. Senate race and prominent elections in other states such as the Michigan and South Carolina U.S. Senate races.
Attendees expressed support for Republican candidates, as well as opposition to U.S. Senate Democratic candidate James Talarico.
Student attendees debated current political topics such as immigration policy as the results came in. As Democratic candidates experienced early success, conversation turned to personal discussion among attendees.
The event ended around 8:15 p.m.
Travis County Democratic Party
The Travis County Democratic Party held its midterms watch party at the Hyatt Regency on Barton Springs Road Tuesday night.
About 700 people registered for the event, according to a party volunteer. The party hosted statewide Democratic candidates Vikki Goodwin and Sarah Eckhardt. Members of University Democrats, the UT student organization representing Democrats on campus, also attended.
The event featured live music and dressed-up dogs as eventgoers celebrated Democratic victories in statewide and national elections. As results showed Eckhardt at an early lead, the Democratic nominee for Texas comptroller spoke on the significance of the national shift to the left shown by the polls.
“We’re seeing a realignment that goes beyond one race, one candidate, even one party,” Eckhardt said. “This is a restoration of democracy.”
Sustainability studies junior Lindsi Sherrard, who has been a member of UDems since their freshman year, said they were surprised by the excitement the night’s results gave them.
“Going into the night, I was extremely nervous,” Sherrard said. “I wasn’t expecting such a strong turnout. I wasn’t expecting the wave of blue we’re seeing.”
Government freshman Aryan Sundaram, a member of UDems, said that while he hoped prominent statewide Democrat candidates like James Talarico and Gina Hinojosa would win, he did not expect the extent of success party candidates experienced as results came in.
“I went to the (University) Catholic Center, and I prayed, and I said, ‘Please, God, give me hope,’” Sundaram said. “And this is hope. This is hope for a better Texas.”
Senior News Reporters Parnita Avala, Noah Braun, Catherine MacLeod, Ashley Paredes, and General News Reporters Ruchi Patel, Riley Shosh, and Mark Trevino contributed to this report.
