President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris were inaugurated into office Wednesday morning. The Inauguration was live-streamed in DSU where students gathered to watch.

WKU students held a variety of opinions regarding the event, ranging from excitement for a female vice president to fears regarding Biden’s age.

Myduyen Tran, a freshman at WKU, said she was nervous about Inauguration Day and the aftermath due to the capital riot that took place a few weeks ago.

“I know there will be riots and people that will be fighting against the transition but I hope today goes by with little hurt and hate going around,” Tran said.

Brandy West, an elementary education major, said that the unrest America is experiencing will settle “once we figure out President Biden’s plans for fighting COVID-19and distributing vaccines.”

Some students, like Mollie Engdahl, a psychology major, expressed concern about the fitness of Biden as president.

“President Biden is the oldest president which might not be in America’s favor just because of potential health conditions which comes with age,” Engdahl said.

Alex Cecil, a freshman studying psychological science, expressed her excitement regarding the first female vice president.

“I’m excited about the next four years,” Cecil said. “I think it’s exciting that we have the first female vice president and woman of color in office. I think that’s awesome for setting a new standard for women in politics and just women in general.”

Cecil also shared her feelings about Biden’s campaign and what she hoped his presidency will mean for the United States.

“I think he took the angles he needed to take to create a campaign that showed empathy and show care for the American people as a whole and not just certain parts,” Cecil said. “I think it’ll be an interesting change, hopefully, we’ll see a shift and I think what I’m hoping for under him would be a shift in creating a more united front because I think right now we see a lot of division, which is heartbreaking especially with the recent insurrection on the Capitol.”

Allison Francis, a junior studying Chinese and Environmental Science, shared her opinion on the exchange of power.

“I thought it was interesting that Pence was there, but obviously that Trump wasn’t,” Francis said. “I felt that it went over pretty well, even though some people don’t think that the election results are legit. It wasn’t the normal way but I think that it still was a peaceful transition.”

Francis felt Biden, while not her favorite, was the better option for president.

“I definitely feel like settling for Biden is choosing the lesser of two evils,” Francis said. “It is a step for peace and unifying the country again.”

Sam Bodemann, a freshman Broadcasting major, said she’s excited for a return to “maturity” in the White House.

“I think that Trump let the country down during his time, and I am very excited to see what Joe and Kamala have in store for our country,” Bodemann said “I believe this duo will bring light back into our country.”

Debra Murray can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @debramurrayy

Henri Aboah can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @henriaboah