these French expatriates in the USA who are experiencing Trump's re-election

“I woke up in tears this morning, I’d like to warn you. I think today is the day I probably lost faith in humanity or at least in the American dream, the one I had, the one I hoped for my daughter… Donald Trump was re-elected by the Americans.” These words were released by the famous French YouTuber Sandrea, who has been living in the United States for several years. In a video facing the camera, intended for her 1.38 million subscribers, the young woman does not hide her emotion. “I feel like this is a bad joke,” she said, sobbing.

There, disillusionment is strong for many since Donald Trump officially became the 47^e president of the United States. Without too much trouble, what's more. As for the French expatriates, Charlotte, who lives in Portland, Oregon, says she has “a hard time accepting the news”. “I am not surprised by the result but I am still shocked that a person like Trump would become president of the United States again. Morally, it’s very complicated to say that I live in a country that voted overwhelmingly for him,” laments the 30-year-old young woman who arrived for the first time in the United States – in Miami, more precisely. – in 2006.

“We live a bit in bubbles”

Philippine* lives in Austin, Texas. She learned of Trump's victory when she woke up through numerous messages from her loved ones in France. “I told myself it was a sketch,” she whispers since our FaceTime call. It feels like a bad movie. Especially since we thought the results were going to be close but in fact no: Trump won by a wide margin.” In this case, in the very conservative state of Texas, the Republican candidate came first in the poll with 56.3% of the votes (50.7% nationally). However, in the neighborhood where the 34-year-old Frenchwoman, her husband and their two young daughters live, the signs in support of Kamala Harris were much more numerous, “around fifty”. Which was not to displease them. “We live a bit in bubbles as expatriates,” explains Philippine, aware of her privileged situation. “Most of us live in big, very attractive cities; This is not the reality of America. You only need to drive an hour to see it. There are people who struggle to pay for their groceries and who vote Trump to have more purchasing power and less immigration. There are also a lot of senior people who just put business first.”

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I'm more worried about his election for Europe

If Philippine anticipated the return of Donald Trump to the White House, it has today become concrete. The real estate mogul will pick up the keys to the Oval Office in January. In the meantime, concerns are already affecting the Frenchwoman. “Already, as a woman and mother of two daughters, Trump's position on women's rights drives me crazy. Knowing that I cannot have the right to an abortion in a country which usually grants so many freedoms raises questions for me and leads me to consider returning to France,” the thirty-year-old confides to us. In addition to women's rights, Philippine regrets the climate skepticism of the new president, but also his fervent support for firearms, his war against Obamacare, his anti-immigration policy… “Because deep down, we are also immigrants to the United States. And I tell myself that he could very well, one day, put a spoke in our wheels. During his first term, he already tightened the procedures for obtaining a visa.” She is also worried about her election for Europe. “Trump will do everything to be good for the United States and the economy. On the other hand, he doesn't care about Europe at all and his decisions could have more repercussions for my loved ones in France,” she warns, suggesting here the war in Ukraine.

Stupor and relief

Thousands of kilometers away, in New Rochelle (New York State), Clara, 35, understands it differently. The Frenchwoman, who arrived in the United States 13 years ago, claims to be “happy” and “relieved” by the re-election of Donald Trump. “For the first time since 2020, I felt optimistic about the future. I felt proud to see that the American people were taking their destiny back into their own hands and realizing that change was necessary,” she told us. What reassures her about Trump's profile? “The fact that he is an accomplished businessman and that he has not only made a career in politics” and “the measures he wants to implement to revive the economy”… “Everything happened. degraded during Joe Biden's mandate. It was a disaster in terms of taxes. We paid much less under Trump. Today, inflation is at its highest. It's hard to borrow. For example, with my husband [il est Américain, NDLR]we have been trying to move for two years but we have not been able to do so because of the interest rates which have gone from 2 or 3% to 7 or 8%.”

This Tuesday, November 5, Clara, who obtained American citizenship in 2021, voted for the first time in the election of the President of the United States. “Satisfied overall” with the billionaire’s first term, disappointed with that of current President Joe Biden, she slipped the ballot stamped Trump. Her husband did the same. “I had hope that he would be elected but I tried not to have too many expectations because we thought he was going to come back in 2020 and in fact no.”

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“Hard to take”

Not all expatriates have the right to vote. Charlotte, the Frenchwoman from Portland, works and resides in the United States thanks to a green cardobtained in the lottery. A permanent resident card which does not allow him to vote. In any case, she admits to not having recognized herself “in either of the two candidates”. She plans to leave the country in the future. This country in which she studied in middle school and high school and where she spent a good part of her adult life. “I was thinking about it even before Trump passed. I have a hard time accepting the fact that the USA is a country governed by money, billionaires, corporations. I also cannot stand that my taxes pay for a genocide in Palestine and having lived 12 years in the USA, I have been able to observe to what extent politics is corrupted by lobbying.

Disenchanted, she appears resolutely pessimistic about the future of the United States. “To have as president of the United States someone like Trump who does not believe in climate change is absolutely catastrophic. For Americans and the whole world.” Especially since the young woman is very committed to protecting the environment and animals and respecting human rights. “Everything Trump rejects. So from a moral point of view, it’s very difficult.” Officially inaugurated on January 20 in Washington, Donald Trump will have four years to carry out his policy. For better or worse.

*The first name has been changed.