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CAMPUS Monarch butterfly migration is underway in Texas, despite challenges in Brazos Valley. A5

SPORTS Aggie Cricket Club allows international students to reconnect to their roots. B3

Q-DROP DEADLINE

NOVEMBER 13 NOTE FROM THE EDITOR All of the facts and figures in The Battalion’s election content were collected as of midnight on Election Day. Several races have yet to be called, and updated information will be available on thebatt.com. Texas State House - District 12 Dee Howard Mullins

Trey Wharton

Texas State House - District 13 Albert Hunter

Angelia Orr

Texas State House - District 14

Fred Medina

Chris Swann — THE BATTALION

Vice President Kamala Harris speaks on stage during a rally at Shell Energy Stadium in Houston, TX on Friday, Oct. 25, 2024.

Gage Skidmore — Flickr via Creative Commons

Donald Trump speaks with supporters at a campaign rally at the Prescott Valley Event Center in Prescott Valley, AZ on Oct. 4, 2016.

Trump takes lead on election day Former Republican president predicted to win swing states By Nicholas Gutteridge Managing Editor With election day turnout set to break 2020’s record, neither Democratic nominee Kamala Harris nor Republican nominee Donald Trump earned enough electoral votes on the first day to declare victory. With Trump at 230 electoral votes and Harris at 210 as of midnight on Nov. 5, both candidates await results from swing states before claiming the title of president-elect. In vital swing states Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania — the infamous “blue wall” — results swung toward Trump early in the night, threatening to deprive Harris of the 44 votes she needs for a term in the Oval Office. The Associated Press called battleground states Georgia and North Carolina for Trump late into the night.

The seven swing states, including Arizona and Nevada, will determine the election’s winner as both candidates aim to capture electoral votes that have swung blue and red in previous elections. Trump won the 2016 election after breaking the blue wall and winning Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania, gains that were reversed when President Joe Biden won them in 2020. Similar to previous elections, most states were called by the Associated Press immediately, such as Florida — a swing state turned heavily Republican — and New York, a reliably Democratic stronghold. But some states’ vote counts won’t be known for days as close races, intense security measures and slow methods delay tallies. In 2020, slow results from Nevada and Pennsylvania spurred by COVID-19 restrictions and an influx of mail-in ballots resulted in the AP declaring Biden the winner four days after the Nov. 3, 2020, election. Since then, state legislatures have refined some ballot processes, such as in Michigan, allowing election

workers to begin counting ballots before election day. However, the legislatures in Pennsylvania and Wisconsin left methods unchanged, while Arizona, Georgia and North Carolina increased security measures, adding operations that officials warned may slow results. This election cycle will reportedly cost over $16 billion, a record-breaking number as Republicans and Democrats attempted to sway the country to their side. Tuesday’s election followed final rallies and appearances on Monday, including a campaign stop by Harris in Pennsylvania and a Trump rally in North Carolina. But with more than 78 million early votes already in, the die is cast. With only a few paths to the White House remaining, Harris needs to see success in the blue wall, or else the 60-year-old vice president will fail in her presidential bid and attempt to break the glass ceiling. Harris spent the night watching the results at Howard University in Washington D.C., her alma mater, while Trump held his watch party in

Mar-a-Lago in Florida. In 2020, early results returned as Republican before mail-in ballots and metro centers — which were counted later in the night — turned states blue, such as Pennsylvania. The switch spurred false claims of election fraud from Republicans. However, the negative results for Harris reportedly have Democrats worried. Each of the seven swing states remains within single-digit percentage points Demoratic as of publication. Harris, being vice Republican president and the Leaning Republican president of the Senate, preLeaningwould Democratic side over her loss or win. Texas senator Ted Cruz’s victory over Colin Allred cut off a path Democrats needed to maintain control of the Senate, as the current electoral map favors Republicans. The AP predicted Republicans will win control of the Senate late into the night, the first time in four years. Roughly a third of the 34 seats being voted on were competitive, and unfavorable results for Democrats saw them lose seats.

Paul Dyson

Texas State House - District 17 Desiree Venable

Stan Gerdes

U.S. House - Texas District 8

U.S. House - Texas District 17

U.S. House - Texas District 10

Texas Senate Senate - District 17 Kathy Cheng Joan Huffman

35% 65%

ELECTION ON A4

Ted Cruz fends off Colin Allred to maintain U.S. Senate seat Allred, a current U.S. represenissues — including transgender Republican incumbent sial healthcare, immigration concerns tative in Texas’ 32nd Congressional abortion restrictions — Cruz District, remained behind Cruz in declares victory after and saw his biggest challenge since he statewide polls since his May 2023 bested Democrat Beto O’Rourke bid announcement. A recent New intense federal race York Times/Siena poll saw Cruz in 2018.

By Nicholas Gutteridge Managing Editor Republican incumbent Ted Cruz has beaten Democratic challenger Colin Allred in the Texas Senate race, guaranteeing another four years in Washington, D.C. for the junior senator. Called roughly three hours after Texas polls closed, multiple outlets declared Cruz the winner after a vicious campaign that saw Allred position himself as a moderate choice for voters disgruntled with Cruz. In a campaign marked with controver-

As of midnight on Nov. 5, the Republican led with 88% of Texas’ votes in. Cruz’s 5,541,753 votes surpasses his 2018 reelection count of 4,260,553 and is expected to increase. The difference between the candidates is a wider margin than in 2018, which saw O’Rourke lose by 200,000 votes compared to the current number of more than 1.1 million. “The results tonight, this decisive victory, should shake the Democrat establishment to its core,” Cruz said during a victory speech in Houston.

ahead with 49% of Texans compared to Allred’s 45%. “When I return to the Senate, I carry with me not just a victory, but a mandate, a mandate from the people of Texas,” Cruz said during a victory speech. The Republican victory deprived Democrats of one of only a few opportunities to maintain Senate control, and the Associated Press predicted Republicans would regain control of the upper chamber during election night. Cruz has been Texas’ junior senator since his election in 2013.

in O g e b ses

Chris Swann — THE BATTALION

Sen. Ted Cruz speaks to supporters during a campaign stop in College Station at Shiner Park on Friday, Oct. 18, 2024.

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