This presidential cycle leaves this country's popular opinion extremely polarized and divided - with two of the most unfavorable presidential candidates in U.S. history. The democratic nominee, Hillary Clinton, has a 52.3% unfavorable rating, while the republican nominee, Donald Trump, has a 59.0% unfavorable rating. No matter your political opinions, I can confidently say that most people strongly dislike one of these major candidates (or both). For the sake of bipartisanship, I will keep my personal biases out of this article.

On the left, we have a candidate who's seen as a real-life Francis Underwood. To critics on the right, she is the paragon of corruption, a criminal who should have been prosecuted for mishandling classified information on a private e-mail server, an overreaching First Lady that wasted federal tax dollars on failed health care reform. She was responsible for four Americans dying in Benghazi. As an Arkansas lawyer, she defended a man who raped his 12-year old niece in 1975, and then she laughed about it on tape. According to her opponent, in her 30 years in public service, in her eight years as senator, she has done nothing to help Americans. She was "the worst Secretary of State in U.S. History"

To critics on the far left, she is seen as an untrustworthy politician who will change her opinions and say anything to get elected as president. She is "everything that is wrong with neoliberalism": a warmonger, a pro-TPP Wall-Street sellout, and the absolute epitome of the status quo. In e-mails exposed by WikiLeaks, she and her DNC accomplice, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, cheated Bernie Sanders out of the nomination. Above all, she is a completely dishonest hypocrite and liar.

On the right, we have a candidate that is one of the most sexist, bigoted, and xenophobic presidential candidates in recent history. He is, without question, the most unqualified presidential candidates in American history. On Politifact, 71% of his statements are rated "Mostly False" or worse, showing that he essentially ignores factual evidence behind his claims. He has called Mexican immigrants "criminals" and "rapists". With women, he has been heard on tape advocating essentially sexual assault, saying "grab them by the p----".

The scope of Donald Trump's outrageous statements is beyond compare, and it's not that he "says mean things". Trump has no real plans for improving the country. His temperament is poor, and he frequently attacks his political opponents without real substance. Certain years, he hasn't paid federal taxes. He is the first candidate of a major political party to not release his tax returns. Major members of his own party, including Senator John McCain and House Speaker Paul Ryan, have denounced him.

I'm just stating the criticisms of the two candidates, as I don't actually buy into each accusation. But obviously, the mere mention of one of the two names provokes strong distaste among the vast majority of Americans. But there is one thing that both Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump have in common: they are from New York. People will say that Hillary being born in Illinois and serving as First Lady of Arkansas makes her not a New Yorker. But as senator of New York from 2000-2008, I consider her permanently affiliated with my state.

As a New Yorker, the response I get from people in college when I point this out is "you should be ashamed of yourself" (as a joke, hopefully). It's no secret that we're stereotyped by the rest of the country for being incredibly rude and morally devoid. Both of our presidential candidates are perceived as such. Texas Senator Ted Cruz even called us out for our "New York Values" at one point during his failed campaign.

Like Trump and Hillary, it seems like New York public officials are constantly mired in scandal, often of the comedic kind. Anthony Weiner, a former House of Representatives member, has been involved in not one, not two, but threedifferent sexting scandals. As the most recent one was this year, it apparently seems like he doesn't learn his lesson. His last one was even with his toddler son sleeping in the picture. After the third, his wife, Huma Abedin, the most trusted advisor of Hillary Clinton, separated from him. Former New York governor, Elliot Spitzer, was involved in a prostitution scandal with an escort service in 2008 that used government funds.

With all this scandal and distaste levied towards popular New York figures, should New Yorkers be ashamed? Despite the fact that New York is incredibly diverse and we're singling out a couple very rich people in a state that boasts a population of almost 20 million, for most of us, Hillary or Trump will represent us on Election Day.

However, I think there is pride we should take from having two of the most unfavorable candidates in history. No one can deny that either aren't strong, distinct personalities - just look at the divisiveness the mention of one of their names will induce. Just look at the scandals both are involved in, despite conclusive concrete evidence against both. Let's not forget that both Trump and Hillary have been under the public microscope their entire lives. Let's sympathize for a moment - what if everyone knew everything we misguidedly posted on social media in 7th grade, and then used it against us?

But with this distaste also comes another attribute that New Yorkers should be positively stereotyped for - toughness and perseverance. Through the media coverage and outrage levied at both campaigns, it's safe to say that any normal, sane person on both sides of the aisle would have quit a long time ago.

Even Trump had kind words to say about Hillary in the most recent Presidential "debate": "She does fight hard, and she doesn’t quit, and she doesn’t give up, and I consider that to be a very good trait.”

Ultimately, I think that is something we should all be a little proud of - for both of them. They just don't know when to go away.