Elections!

November has been the month of elections for us in Nicaragua. First, of course we were able to watch Obama win, which was bittersweet because we were so far away from home. Everyone in our town was happy to hear that Obama won and I think it changed some perspectives that people have of Americans. One guy told Alex, "I really didn't think he could win. I thought Americans were too racist." Another girl on my volleyball team commented, "The United States is finally making some changes. If they can change, maybe there is hope for Nicaragua too." I think it was really inspiring for the people here to see the Americans make such an important and historical decision. Hopefully, the Peace Corps budget will increase too :)
On another note, the municipal elections were held a week after ours. They are to elect the new mayors of each town. In Nicaragua, the mayor plays a pivotal role in each town and who is elected is a huge deal. There are two main parties, the Liberales and the Sandinistas. Currently the Sandinistas are in power and after the elections in Nagarote, it looks as though it will continue. However, there has been a lot of violence related to the elections and police have all been on patrol with tear-gas, face masks, the works. Many people are enraged by the results because they think there was fraud all over the country so the Sandinistas could remain in power. It is a very controversial and touchy subject so we have tried to lay low. There is going to be a recount of the votes so we will see what happens. It was interesting to see how much passion people have for the elections here. Work and school were canceled for two days for the elections and people as young as 16 are able to vote. People waited in line for hours. After the Sandinista were declared the winners, there was a HUGE parade through the street. Our town is pretty evenly divided so while half of them celebrated the other half got angry and cried "Fraud!" Travel in the capital has been dangerous because that is where the violence is most prevalent. We will keep everyone updated as the votes are recounted to appease the other party.
Lastly, we are finishing up the school year with final exams, pictures, and graduation ceremonies. We will be posting pictures of these events shortly. Sorry for the delay in the update. We are really looking forward to coming home for Christmas and can't wait to see you all :)