Southeast Missouri State University students Zac Johnson, Ben Rischbieter and Austin Tanck sit together at a table near the door at the Republican Watch Party in Cape Girardeau. They shift in their chairs with an intense look on their faces. When asked how they’re feeling about the result so far, all three students say in unison “nervous.”

“Hillary will take us back,” Tanck said. “She’ll take us back to a time where people live in, like in Europe, where everyone was oppressed. Trump stands for freedom, capitalism, where I’m free to do what I want.”

Trump appeals to these students in several ways.

“I feel like he does put a wrench in the political machine, that’s why I feel the media doesn’t like him and a lot of other politicians don’t like him,” Johnson said.

The students feel that Trump has tapped into a frustration of the American people.

“They’re tired of pay for play,” Tanck said. “They’re tired of politicians just buying their way.”