The US election campaign was a bitter battle that left the country divided. While recent figures show 26.4% of the electorate backed Donald Trump and 26.5% backed Hillary Clinton (who won the popular vote), 42% of eligible voters didn’t vote at all.

The Guardian did a call-out for non-voters, and received just over 100 responses, with 28% saying they regretted not voting, and 65% saying they didn’t regret it. Others were unsure if they had made a mistake.

Among the Democrats who replied to us, many said they would have voted if Bernie Sanders’ name had been on the ballot. Republican voters thought Donald Trump was not fully qualified for the job. Many of those who responded said they wanted change and that the electoral college and two-party voting system no longer worked (2.7% of the US electorate cast their vote for third-party candidates). Here are a selection of views.



Brooks Boyd, 57, Texas: ‘I’ve always voted Republican but could not stomach Donald Trump’



Facebook Twitter Pinterest A protest against Donald Trump’s appointments. Photograph: David Mcnew/AFP/Getty Images

I am a Republican and have always voted for my party, but not this year. I put Mitt Romney’s name down on the ballot, a candidate who wasn’t running.



What put me off about Donald Trump was the fact he has no clue how to run a country. I also dislike the way he treats women and everyone around him. He is a charlatan. I don’t even think he is a good business person and he’s definitely not smart.

I don’t think he ever expected to be elected; it was as much a surprise to him as everyone else. There is no way he is going to build a wall along the southern US border. It would not make sense, because it would not be impenetrable – anyone from Texas knows that. Trump just spewed rubbish and people believed it. It didn’t matter what he said. People ate it up.

I don’t think he ever expected to get elected – it was as much a surprise to him as everyone else Brooks

That said, I couldn’t bring myself to vote for Hillary Clinton. If there was another Democratic candidate I might have voted for their party for the first time ever. The problem with Clinton is that people couldn’t stomach her lies and cronyism. While no one knows what to expect with Trump, we know with Clinton and are tired of it.

What would have got me to vote is quite simple. I wanted a candidate to say things that made sense. Talk about helping everyone and not excluding people. Nothing too far left and nothing too far right. Presidents who are able to reach across the aisle and compromise get things done – whether Democrat or Republican.

I do not have any regrets about not voting. My conscience would not allow me to vote for either candidate. Texas is a red state so I knew Trump would win anyway.

David, 31, New Jersey: ‘I regret not voting, I never thought Donald Trump would win’

I would have voted for Hillary Clinton, but I didn’t. I thought she would win the White House.



I feel heartbroken for those disenfranchised Americans who voted for Trump, not because of his divisive rhetoric, but in spite of it. Hillary is a genius diplomat, but she proved, once again, to be an ineffectual communicator. She could not reach those desperate to put food back on their table. I used to drive past the front-lawn Trump signs in my town and dismiss the homeowner as a lunatic, but my own liberal elitism has blown up in my face. They are not lunatics, they are people with a different experience to me, and that has swayed how they vote.

I hope we will begin to understand how Trump voters’ experiences, not their ignorance, led them to this position. But I am scared to death for our environment, for those among us who are in need of care and, most of all, for those who cast their vote for Trump. They thought he was their last chance for prosperity. For these middle-Americans, the past was greater than the present. They remember a time when they, and their entire extended family, had decent-paying jobs. When every storefront in their now-deserted town had a thriving local business.



There was a stark disparity of views in this election, and why was the result so unexpected? Because when the liberal establishment of this country drove by front-lawn Trump signs, they had the same response as I did.



Maria Cincotta, 38, from California: ‘My vote for Clinton wouldn’t count, because California is a blue state, so why bother?’

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Photograph: Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images

I despise Trump and Clinton disappoints me, even though she’s quite well-spoken and on-point on many issues. I would have voted for Bernie Sanders if I had the chance. I am more of an anarchist and not a fan of the US political system at all. I wanted to vote, but I know that my vote for Clinton wouldn’t count, as California is a blue state, so why bother? As I’m on the road, it would have been difficult for me to receive my mail-in ballot.

I am not apathetic – far from it. But the electoral college eliminates the chance for me to make a difference. My state is blue, and my vote won’t make it any more blue than it already is. My Republican mom’s “red” vote was also effaced by a sea of blue in California, according to the electoral college system. But she doesn’t mind – her “side” had the last laugh this time.



I do have regrets now about not voting. I am furious, embarrassed, disgusted, and afraid. I fear for the future of my home country and the world. I fear for the safety of anyone who is not a gun-toting white heterosexual cis-gendered male in the United States. I am once again embarrassed to be American. When I moved to Europe in 2007, George W Bush was in power, and many Europeans responded to me negatively because of this. I didn’t support him, but the president serves as the face of the nation, and it’s usually quite an ugly face to behold.



Obama made it acceptable to be an American in Europe for eight years. That was a bit of a relief. Now we’ve come full-circle; another sorry excuse for a leader is taking power.

We need to take advantage of this historic moment to reevaluate our system in the broadest way possible. Getting rid of the electoral college system would ensure that every vote counts. To get more involvement in the system we should allow same-day voter registration and let former felons vote in every state.



To prevent the same people getting into power we also need to look at campaign finance reform. It’s time to replace the two-party system with a multi-party one. This would ensure greater representation of our diverse population, paving the way for real social change.

Rafiell Jones, 55, from Washington, DC: ‘I wanted Hillary over Trump. I wholly expected her to win’



Facebook Twitter Pinterest Protester Molly Gosline, who wants to get rid of the electoral college. Photograph: Philip Sears/Reuters

I did not vote because as a follower of Christ I could not give my vote to such a morally bankrupt person as Donald Trump. But I also could not lend my approval to Hillary Clinton after how her husband’s policies affected the black community. I also believe that the two-party system does not work any more. I usually vote for an independent (read: progressive) candidate at elections, but this year I simply abstained as no one really stood out to me.

Hillary and her party have walled themselves away from the common folk who needed them so desperately. They have walled themselves in with corporate money while we realise less and less of the America dream. Instead, we get more overtime and fear.

Having said that, I wanted Hillary over Trump, and I wholly expected her to win. I feel my community should discuss the president-elect because we will need each other more than ever now. I am angry that others voted for him, given his racist and misogynistic views. I could not in good conscience give my vote to either him or Clinton. I did not want to choose the lesser of two evils, but I am still unhappy with the result. I am sad that race still plays such a divisive role in America.