Good morning from Washington, D.C. I’m one of two fyi.news correspondents here covering the U.S. elections. As I write this editorial, our editor-in-chief, Anastasis Koutsogiannis, is testing his luck with the NYT’s swing-state game to predict the winner. We’ll be here until the end of the week—practically sleepless—working to bring you stories from these elections as clearly and directly as possible. After all, no one is expected to fully grasp this often confusing, elector-based system (which we’ve broken down into an explainer as best we can) or the fact that the final outcome could hinge on a few thousand ballots cast in some small town in a swing state. Meanwhile, the presidential and vice-presidential candidates continue crisscrossing these key states up to the very last hour.
I’m writing from a bar across from the fenced-in White House, in a capital blanketed in red, orange, and yellow leaves, calmly and efficiently welcoming hundreds of journalists from around the world. Local journalists, however, may not feel quite as calm, especially after Trump recently said he wouldn’t be too bothered if someone shot a journalist during his campaign rally in Pennsylvania!
Today, you might see only carefree tourists and couples taking photos in front of the Capitol, but it would take a lobotomy to forget what happened there on January 6, 2021.
Washington’s calm isn’t indicative of the entrenched polarization beneath the surface. Today, you might see only carefree tourists and couples taking photos in front of the Capitol, but it would take a lobotomy to forget what happened there on January 6, 2021. During a live broadcast, an enraged pro-Trump mob—wearing hats, furs, and carrying clubs and even axes—stormed in, wrecking everything to protest how the 2020 presidential elections “robbed” the Republican candidate of the correct result. Quite a way to kick off a new year and a fresh presidential term for Biden and Harris, who were sworn in two weeks later. All of this took place amid a severe COVID crisis that had already strained the American healthcare system and public endurance, only months after Trump suggested citizens might “chug” a dose of bleach as a cure. We’ve truly lived through unimaginable times.
In the spring of the following year, yet another major issue emerged to split the already divided American public: abortion. The Supreme Court—its composition shifted to a more conservative stance during Trump’s presidency—overturned the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, which had established that the U.S. Constitution protects a woman’s right to choose an abortion without excessive government interference. This reversal struck down numerous federal and state laws on abortion across the U.S. The streets filled with protesters chanting “my body, my choice,” while millions of women now faced increased risks to their health and lives if they sought to end a pregnancy. While in Europe, we may struggle to fully understand this situation, given that it’s largely settled here, in the U.S., powerful anti-abortion lobbies, evangelicals, and Republicans have fiercely opposed abortion for generations. Attacks and arson against abortion clinics are common occurrences. Disturbing.
Their primary concern, which will guide their vote for president according to survey responses, is the economy—specifically, inflation.
In this brief look back at the past four years—a deeply toxic period for the U.S. that concluded with a high-stakes six-month election season marked by two assassination attempts and a resignation—two new wars, in Ukraine and the Middle East, also entered the scene. Although there have been fierce debates in politics and Congress over financial and military aid to these conflicts, Americans are generally less concerned with foreign policy issues unless they touch on their own immigration challenges, border security, or Latino communities. What they’re truly focused on, and what they say will guide their presidential vote, according to surveys, is the economy—particularly inflation (2.4% this past September). Overall, the cost of basic goods is now, on average, 25% higher than in 2019.
The million-dollar question is how this economic concern will shape voter decisions. Even polling companies, which have shown a close race for weeks, are hesitant to make any predictions. But now, the wait is nearly over, the moment is near, and the race is about to begin.
