By Kristen Klochko
I believe as an American people we are voting for more than gender. We are voting for issues that affect our economy, schools and laws. I have now been a part of two historical elections. During the first, I saw an African American become president for the first time. And in the second, a woman is running for office. I will never deny that these are amazing feats, and I’m proud to have witnessed them. This is America’s freedom and democracy at its finest. As a wholeheartedly millennial feminist, this could have been a very exciting time for me, and it was. But I didn’t vote for Hillary. Now, before I receive the hateful comments, at least hear me out. Then, if you still disagree with what I have to say, go ahead and do so. This is America, after all—you have the right to think what you will.
I consider myself a strong, independent woman who takes no crap from any man, and I think most millennials would say the same. While I agree that Trump doesn’t have the best mouth on him, at least he doesn’t have the allegations that Bill Clinton has had against him. Honestly, I couldn’t deal with the kind of pressure in a marriage that Hillary has. It begs the question, why has she allowed that kind of behavior from a husband to continue if she’s such a feminist example? Just look up Juanita Broaddrick, Paula Jones, and, of course, Monica Lewinsky—and you’ll know what I’m talking about. No, Bill Clinton isn’t running again, but I personally don’t want a president who has allowed this behavior to occur in a marriage at any time. If Clinton is truly for all women, like she says, then she needs to be defending the women who were terrorized by Bill Clinton as well.
The United States is a country based on small businesses and the American Dream. I’ve witnessed this process through my father’s company, but now I’m experiencing it personally as I start my own small business. That leads me to my third point regarding Trump and feminism. He’s looking out for the little guys, or, in my case, girls. While Hillary plans to increase taxes and cause more individuals to be dependent on the government, Trump plans to decrease taxes to ensure that ALL people have more money to support themselves. He’s not trying to pick and choose who deserves breaks. Whereas Hillary is more worried about taking from those who are successful and giving it to those that are not. The welfare reform she backed years ago is a perfect example of how her actions actually played out.
I won’t go into Trump’s family too much, because some say that is an overused example, and I guess I would agree. Even though Ivanka Trump did have a successful modeling career, she runs her own million dollar line, has a portion of her website devoted to female entrepreneurs, and maintains a marriage, along with having three children. Donald Trump’s advisor, Michael Cohen, reported in an interview with CNN that Trump’s company has more female executives than males. Trump is more worried about how a job turns out as opposed to the sex of the employee completing it. As a female, I prefer this narrative to the reverse. I don’t want to receive a job, promotion or pay raise simply because I am a woman. I want an executive position because I have done the best job. Isn’t that what feminism is? We get equality because we have the ability to produce equal results, not simply because we’re female and deserve it. Trump has shown to have this mentality, and that’s why I’m standing by him. I honestly wanted to vote for a female president, but for me, 2016 was not the year.
Want to write pieces like this? Sign up for the Her Campus Story Prompts listserv for frequent opportunities!