On Nov. 8, 2016, I climbed into bed after staying up an extra hour past my bedtime to watch states turn blue and red on the television screen. I could still hear its drone from where my parents watched in the living room. I closed my eyes, thinking that when I woke, there would be the first woman president.

The next morning, I remember sitting on my toy bench, playing with my Polly Pockets before I went to fifth grade for the day. My mom came in and sat down beside me.

“Hey,” she said, gently, preparing to break the news. “Donald Trump won last night.”

That was eight years ago.

I am now 19, an adult, but I still remember that gut-sinking, hopeless feeling. Perhaps it was less of my own emotion than a reflection of my mom’s, who understood the implications for herself and her children on a far deeper level.

But even then, I knew. I knew what kind of a man Trump was and what kind of a president he would be.

On Oct. 26, back in my hometown where those Polly Pockets now sit on a shelf in a closet, I voted against Trump. It’s odd because that 11-year-old girl never thought Trump would still be running when time came for her to cast her vote, much less that the polls would be showing such close numbers.

But I did. My mom and I drove to the early voting location, and I filled out my ballot for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz.

And today, on the first Tuesday of November — Election Day, and possibly for days to come while votes continue to be tallied — I am scared.

It seems inconceivable that Trump and Harris are polling as closely as they are. That nearly 50 percent of Americans are still loyal to Trump. That some say they are still “undecided.”

I don’t think I can adequately address every reason Trump should never hold political office again in one article.

But I’ll try.

Because I don’t want to wake up on Nov. 6 and feel that sinking feeling again. Because I don’t want to wake up on Jan. 20, stripped of my rights. Because I don’t want any of my friends or family losing their own rights because of their race, gender identity, sexual orientation, immigration status, or any number of traits that don’t align with Trump’s straight, white, cisgendered male schema.

When looking at Trump altogether, I’ve organized his primary issues into five categories: He’s mentally unfit, he’s bigoted, his policies are not beneficial to the American people, he’s a convicted felon, and he’s apathetic to the democratic system.

Although this is severely understating the total impact of his ineligibility to be chief executive of the United States, it generally touches on his most glaring problems.

At 78 years old, Trump would be the oldest president to be sworn into office. There’s a reason most senior citizens have retired long before this age, with some seeking out retirement homes to aid them in their day-to-day routines.

If you’ve watched any of his recent debates or rallies, you’ll notice that most of his behavior and speech is erratic, with little to no reasoning or logic behind what he says and does. From 40-minute dance sessions to incoherent ramblings to straight-out lies, his mental state appears to be on the decline, even despite his claims that his brain is “very fertile.”

Harry Segal, a senior lecturer in the psychology department at Cornell University and the psychiatry department at Weill Cornell Medicine, stated that, “Trump has shown evidence of dementia for the past year as indicated by his strange gait, phonemic paraphasia — when he begins a word and can’t finish it — and decline in the complexity of his words and concepts.”

Segal additionally pointed out that Trump has been avoiding events where he has to respond coherently and spontaneously and has also been more impulsive — yet another sign of incipient dementia.

None of this bodes well for a position where the main duties involve thinking on his feet and communicating with the general public as well as with diplomats. I don’t want an impulsive, dementia-riddled man in charge of the nuclear codes. I don’t think that should be controversial.

Nor should the idea that all human beings are equal and deserving of equal rights and protections be controversial. Yet Trump has made his disdain clear for anyone that does not identify as a straight, white, cisgender, property-owning man.

He’s made all manner of inflammatory comments toward and promises against people opposite himself and his primary demographic.

The former president has promised that, if elected, he will rescind Title IX protections from discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. Along with his vice presidential pick, JD Vance, anti-transgender attacks have been a center point to their campaign.

Trump has made entirely inappropriate and demeaning remarks toward women, on top of multiple allegations of sexual misconduct and rape. He has proudly boasted that he was the one to overturn Roe v. Wade, leading women across the country to lose their ability to choose in matters of their bodies and pregnancies, sometimes even in cases of rape, incest, or health concerns.

He also has a deep history of racist remarks and actions. From saying that “laziness is a Black trait” to describing all Mexicans as rapists and criminals, there is almost no race or ethnicity he hasn’t offended, apart from perhaps some American white supremacists.

These hateful sentiments are reflected in the policies he has signed into and out of law. Still, his supporters cling blindly to him and his policies.

However, in a recent poll published by The Washington Post, when presented blindly with various policy proposals from both Harris and Trump, it was nearly all of Harris’ proposals — not Trump’s — that the majority of registered voters preferred.

Although most employers are uncomfortable with the idea of hiring people with a criminal record, even when the crime committed is minor or nonviolent, apparently this stipulation doesn’t apply to running for presidency — at least when you’re Donald Trump.

Trump has so far been indicted in four inquiries, including four counts related to efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election and obstruct the certification of the electoral vote, 10 counts related to efforts to reverse the 2020 election results in Georgia, 40 counts related to possession of classified documents and obstructing efforts to retrieve them, and finally, 34 counts related to falsifying business records.

In the first case to reach a verdict, Trump was found guilty on all 34 counts related to the payment of hush money to cover up a sex scandal during the 2016 election.

Despite his plethora of legal entanglements, Trump has been relatively unfazed. Perhaps rightfully so considering the Supreme Court of the United States, a third of whom he appointed, issued a ruling declaring former presidents immune from prosecution for official acts taken while in the White House. He is, so to speak, above the law — something that goes against the very democratic basis of our nation.

His apathy to the democratic system was most keenly demonstrated by his refusal to accept his loss in a fair and free election in 2020. His later role in the Jan. 6 insurrection only cemented the idea that he does not care what the people want.

So, if you haven’t yet: Vote as if your rights depended on it. As if United States democracy depends on it. Because they do and it does. Know your Election Day rights. Know that comparing Harris and Trump for president is like comparing orange juice and bleach as beverages: You might not like the pulp in one, but at least it’s not poisonous.