UCLA students expressed disappointment and optimism at a Bruin Democrats election watch party Nov 5.

The Bruin Democrats at UCLA hosted a watch party at Royce Hall for students to follow along and react together to the election results as they came in. Despite the persistent narrative that the youth are politically apathetic, the turnout was fairly strong, said Isabelle Crone-Baron, the internal vice president of the Bruin Democrats and a fourth-year history and public affairs student.

“People underestimate young people, especially during this time,” Crone-Baron said. “Everything we’re voting on right now and all the people we’re voting on right now has direct impact on our futures and our existence.”

The room was filled with UCLA undergraduates discussing the election results, watching the projected screen with the live news intently.

Students who are upset with the election results can use their concerns to motivate their actions by campaigning for their preferred candidates in the future, said Adam Peddie, a second-year history student who attended the watch party. Concrete political actions include phone-banking, door-knocking, canvassing, voting and talking to others about politics, Peddie added.

“Make sure that your impact on politics does not end with just voting,” he said. “Be sure to help make the world a better place and pursue your preferred policies.”

Pursuing political work can also help students take their mind off of the anxieties they face because of the general election, said Jack Thompson, the president of Bruin Democrats, in a speech during the watch party.

Attending the event was an opportunity to find a community with people who had similar political beliefs, said Emily Henschel, a third-year communications student.

Henschel said while she believes many of her friends’ rights are at risk during this election, they are not as politically active as she expected them to be. She added that although respects their decision, she would prefer to be around others who are passionate about politics.

Although people are fearful about the election results, life will still continue, said Henschel.

“We will still live. It will be OK, but the idea that it might be a bit harder to live is what’s scaring people so much, especially women and especially minorities,” she added.

Emma Poff, a third-year anthropology student, said she was concerned about the potential of political violence while waiting for the election results to be confirmed. While watching election results slowly come in, she said the wait was excruciating.

According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, tensions were high throughout the country Nov. 5, with bomb threats being made against election centers – though the bureau said they had not determined any of those threats to be credible.

Poff also said she used social media both as a distraction and as a way to keep updated throughout the night rather than stress about the small percentage differences in states.

Even though the presidential election results did not favor the Democratic party, there was still reason to be optimistic for future progress, said Taryn Lambert, a third-year psychology major and another attendee of the watch party.

“I know there’s a lot of people out there working really hard to get people out to the polls,” Lambert said. “There’s a lot of people that want that change.”

Contributing reports from Leydi Cris Cobo Cordon, Daily Bruin senior staff.