ABSTRACT
From start to finish, the election of 2016 was unconventional. Making this election even more unusual were polling data. At every point in the race, Donald Trump trailed Hillary Clinton, sometimes by amounts beyond the margin of error. Thus Election Day brought a stunning surprise when Trump pulled off a victory. He had concentrated heavily in the Midwest, and the strategy paid off in the electoral college. At 70 years of age, Trump became the oldest man to win the presidency. Some Trump backers, when surveyed, were reportedly reluctant to say they planned to vote for him because the media had derided his candidacy. Polls often elide the enthusiasm factor, and Trump’s followers backed him with energy, as his rallies evinced, while Clinton’s support was more subdued, especially when compared with Barack Obama’s. Trump bonded with blue-collar Americans. Many Trump supporters delighted in poking a stick in the eye of media and punditry elites.
