ABC Final meeting of Fall Term

ABC reconvened for our final meeting of the term this past Wednesday. We discussed the election and focused specifically on voting habits, the priorities driving voting decisions, and the state of the election. While the election took place on Tuesday evening, the results we not finalized when we met. 

Interestingly, the WSJ conducted a poll and asked participants whether this election is about the economy or about COVID-19. While elections have historically been driven by people's perceptions of each candidate's ability to handle the economy, this year, it turns out 3% more people are voting based on who they believe will handle the coronavirus better. This is an interesting take on the election. Do you believe this is what voters considered? Or is there something else more prominent that went through voters' minds this year? We based our discussion primarily on this podcast.

 

Charlotte brought up good points about voting habits, noting that Republicans seemed less inclined to use mail-in ballots. We talked about the mixed messaging from the White House about the efficacy of those ballots and how that may have affected who chose to vote by mail. Rohan brought up good points about how each candidate is marketing himself to the American people. Whereas the President seemed to be focusing on calling Biden a socialist, Biden focused his attention on being "every American's president". Additionally, we shared insights into the coronavirus and handling of the pandemic. We asked ourselves, does a Biden administration really mean less coronavirus? We looked to European countries, noting spikes throughout the continent even though they have leaders who wore masks, believed in science, and imposed restrictions. Luc shared another interesting point that generally speaking, Europeans are known to trust and listen to the government more than Americans. Yet even then, they're experiencing a second wave after a summer with very few cases. Check out this article for more. 

ABC will recommence meetings after Thanksgiving break! We wish you the best of luck with ultimate and finals week. Stay safe and stay healthy :)