By Parker Soughers
On November 5th, 2024, the nation decided who would be the United States’s next president. The race between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump was close—to say the least. Each candidate had spent a considerable amount of time campaigning across the country.
Each candidate strived to gain support in the 7 swing states that would decide the election. Nevada, Arizona, Georgia, North Carolina, Wisconsin, Michigan, and Pennsylvania, each had the potential to make or break each candidate’s aspirations for the presidency.
Polls that were taken before the election by FiveThirtyEight predicted that Harris would win the election. It was thought that Harris would win the states of Michigan, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania, also known as the “Blue Wall” states for their historical democratic results. However, in the 2024 election, this was not the case.
In the race for 270 electoral college votes, Trump proved to exceed expectations in many states. Not only did his 312 electoral college votes win him the presidency, but he won by a landslide. What was predicted to be an incredibly close race ended up not being close at all. Trump won all 7 swing states, including the traditionally democratic “Blue Wall” states.
Following the announcement of the swing states, Vice President Kamala Harris officially conceded the election, stating, “I know folks are feeling and experiencing a range of emotions right now. I get it. But we must accept the results of this election.” She officially congratulated President Trump on his win, and promised a peaceful transition of power from the Biden administration to the new Trump administration.
Why were the polls wrong? Polls have never been perfect, and pollsters often warn of errors in their statistical analysis. The issue itself isn’t fully based on the results of the polls. To understand the reasons for Trump’s success, it is imperative to look at each candidate’s campaign.
Vice President Harris’ campaign was historical to say the least. After President Joe Biden dropped out of the election, Harris stepped in to take his place as the democratic ticket. The 107 day campaign that Harris ran was successful to begin with but slowly lost its momentum. The support she gained from the Democratic National Convention in August, and the Presidential Debate in September (which Harris was the considered victor) looked to propel her easily to the White House.
However, as her campaign went on, questions arose on how she would separate herself from the shortcomings and failures of President Biden. Large majorities of Americans were concerned with how poorly Biden had handled the economy during his term. Others were wanting the Vice President to renounce Biden’s actions in Israel. These issues, while answered by Harris, stained much of her campaign efforts and would continue to haunt her race for the presidency.
Meanwhile, former President Trump’s success relied on the back of rural communities. In many democratic “stronghold states” the support for Trump in rural communities was overwhelming. While he lost in large populated cities, rural voters showed up in historic numbers, helping to win Trump the election.
Trump’s main campaign points focused on the economy and immigration—two issues which continued to garner him support throughout his campaign. Frustration with President Biden and a return to the “status quo” were capitalized on by Trump’s campaign, which would end up convincing a majority of Americans to vote for Trump.
Democrats across the country are still reeling from the loss of the election. Not only did they lose the White House, but Republicans gained a majority control of the Senate and are poised to do the same with the House of Representatives. Even the Judicial Branch of the government in the form of the Supreme Court contains a majority of conservative judges.
In the wake of Trump’s staggering victory, many democratic states now rush to create preventative measures to protect abortion rights and marginal communities. Californian Senator Gavin Newsom recently called a special session in order to protect California’s progressive policies involving immigration, climate change, and abortion—all of which are planned to come into effect before Trump takes office.
Now over 73 million American citizens lament Harris’ loss and prepare themselves for a second Trump presidency. A sense of dread for the future permeates throughout the democratic party. The 2024 election proved to be eventful and historical—just not historical in the way that many Americans were hoping for.
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