The U.S election is always at the center of the world’s attention. However, this year’s election is different from the previous ones because of one name: Donald Trump. Yes, and the world was left dumbfounded when the election result on November 8, 2016, showed that the real estate mogul unexpectedly won the election, beating his Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton.
Few predicted that the controversial billionaire could be the world’s most powerful leader. The market reacted quickly and violently. The world is wondering what his foreign policy will look like.
Despite his little political experience and racist statements, Trump offered a certainty that most White workers, particularly those without education, badly want in such an uncertain economy like this. His patriotic slogan”Make America Great Again”and promises seemed to be realistic and understandable to most Americans, who badly hope for change after eight years of Obama’s presidency.
The leaked emails of Clinton is also seen as one of the main factors that brought Trump the presidency. Both candidates have their scandals and there are no clean politicians in this world. However, it is very sensible that despite Trump’s sexual harassment scandal and “locker room talk”, The Federal Bureau Investigation played a vital role in causing Clinton to lose the electoral vote, despite leading popular votes.
Trump’s victory reminds us of the victory of George W.Bush in 2000, beating Al Gore who won the popular vote. Moreover, Clinton inherited her husband’s past sins, along with her email scandals.
However, the signals that Trump would win the election came a few months before the ballot and it was started in Britain. Last June, Britain voted to leave the EU during the referendum which was soon called”Brexit”.
Brexit phenomenon indicated the rise of anti-establishment movement and populist political point of view across the world. People are getting tired of political elites, capitalism, and feel upset over immigration. The latter has become the most discussed issue recently. With the rising popularity of anti-establishment political figures, immigrants have strong reasons to worry that they will be the target of racism attack.
The effect of Trump will likely affect the upcoming elections in some European nations. On December 4, 2016, Austria will hold a presidential election. The survey showed that anti-immigrant Norbert Hofer still leads and is likely to win the race.
France and Germany will hold the election in 2017, with the former will select a new prime minister and several parliament members while Germany will vote for local and parliamentary candidates. The Czech Republic and Netherlands will vote too in 2017.
France's well-known anti-immigrant politician Marine Le Pen of the National Front was the first leader to congratulate Trump. After the Brexit referendum, polls showed Le Pen’s popularity continued to rise.
Even she promised to push for France to leave the EU if she becomes the next prime minister. While Alternative For Germany, a newly-established anti-immigrant party, is still a newbie compared to the National Front. However, the incumbent Angela Merkel has something to worry with the presence of this party, thanks to her declining popularity over the past one month.
Trump’s victory indicated the victory of a new political trend. As the world is watching what Trump is going to do to his country and the world, there is a possibility that European countries will have their own Trumps in their next elections.
