On the morning of Nov. 9 (Japan time), as voting in the U.S. presidential election was underway, I joined the guests of U.S. Ambassador Caroline Kennedy at her official residence in Tokyo. The idea was to gather with other friends of the United States as the election results came in and share in the excitement of celebrating American democracy.
At 10:30 a.m., Kennedy made a brief address. "There are a number of national holidays, such as Veterans Day, that are important to me. But presidential elections, which come just once every four years, are particularly special." Kennedy highlighted the presidential elections of 1960 and 2008. In 1960, her father, John F. Kennedy, was elected president after the first televised debate, and in 2008 Americans elected Barack Obama as the nation's first African-American president. Kennedy suggested that the election this time, in which Americans would decide whether or not to elect their first woman president, would be a third historic election.
Ironically, the initial mood surrounding the expectation of a Clinton victory changed shortly after Kennedy's speech. Donald Trump was ahead in Florida and Ohio. By 11:30 a.m., there was a growing sense that something was very much amiss.