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- Heather Mason, a US citizen and writer living in Johannesburg, voted absentee through the US consulate last month.
- Mason, Americans and the world are eagerly awaiting who will be the next president of the United States.
- She hopes that Biden will emerge victorious because the country cannot have Trump in power for another term.
“No one expected Donald Trump to become our president. Even four years later, I have a hard time believing it,” Heather Mason, a US citizen living in Johannesburg, told News24.
Mason voted absentee through the US consulate last month and encouraged other Americans living out of state to do the same.
She described Trump’s tenure in the White House as “despicable” and said she was unhappy with the way the administration responded to the coronavirus pandemic, the Black Lives Matter protests, or its policies on health and immigration.
Mason, whose family still lives in the United States, got up early on Election Day.
Suzanna Mason with her son Jack. (Heather Mason, supplied)
His sister, Susanna, who lives in Vermont, in the northeastern United States, described the morning of the election as tense.
Susanna, a teacher who also voted for Biden, said this year’s election is stressful and that many of her friends had “planned movie nights to distract themselves from the anxiety of waiting.”
She, however, would be waiting patiently, watching the numbers arrive.
“I’ll probably stay up tonight until two in the morning or so. Who knows if I’ll sleep tonight because I’ll watch every minute of the coverage,” Susanna told News24 while Facetiming with her sister.
Nina Neubauer, a child care worker in a children’s home, is an American citizen who has lived in Johannesburg for 10 years.
She also hopes for a victory from Biden, but wants peace to prevail more than anything.
Nina Neubauer, a US citizen based in Johannesburg, voted absentee through the US consulate. (Kayleen Morgan, News24)
News24 Kayleen Morgan
Neubauer, who moved to Johannesburg after vacationing here in 2010, said he is concerned about the violence that could erupt if either party wins.
“I pray for calm and peace, that the process runs smoothly and that there is acceptance by whoever wins,” he said.
“I know that many people are suffering and have been hurt by the current president. People are deeply hurt and divided,” he added.
Neubauer said he believes the 2016 election was a wake-up call for many Americans and hopes that citizens will not take their privilege to vote for granted.
