Many have asked us what the elections were like here, do the Irish follow American politics, and who did the Irish want to win...the answer is that the elections adourned the front page of the papers all week, coverage of both campaigns were written feverishly on a daily basis, and on the night of the elections many of the Irish stayed up to 4am to watch the results. Obama was the overwhelming vote for all of Ireland...could it be because Obama's great-great-great grandfather was Irish? Perhaps, but more so like the rest of us, Ireland wanted a better America.
Headlines in the paper following Obama's win:
"The day America became a little bit cool again"
--(indicating the overall view of Europeans that "the America we love is back"; a 'goodbye George' party was held in Paris; expat Americans were greeted warmly around the world once more)
--the above couldn't be more true; after Obama's win, we've noticed that people seem to take greater interest in us after hearing our accents...immediately they ask about Obama and our thoughts.
"Election fever hits one in six workers"
--1 in 6 workers will take the day off of work after sitting up all night watching the election.
--"This is the start of a new term and the start of a new era post-Bush and naturally it has everyone talking"
One newspaper did a tribute farewell to George Bush by printing a selection of his most famous quotes:
"They misunderestimated me." --Bentonville, AK; 11/6/2000
"I know the human being and fish can coexist peacefully" --Saginaw, MI; 9/29/2000
"Rarely is the questioned asked: Is our children learning?" --Florence, S.C.; 1/11/2000
"I didn't grow up in the ocean--as a matter of fact--near the ocean--I grew up in the desert. Therefore, it was a pleasant contrast to see the ocean. And I particularly like it when I'm fishing." --Washington D.C.; 9/26/2008
"Families is where our nation finds hope, where wings take dream." --LaCrosse, WI; 10/18/2000
Farewell George...
Voting can easily be done via absentee ballots, but we also learned after the elections that we could have voted at the American Embassy here.
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