My Journal

Photo provided by The Associated Press. President Donald Trump after announcing his third presidential campaign in Palm Beach, Florida.

The cascade of “Kamala is Brat” videos across TikTok and Instagram obviously did nothing to help Kamala Harris win either the popular vote or the presidency. Along with millions nationwide, I have found myself wondering where exactly Harris’ campaign went wrong. Even more than that, how did Trump’s campaign secure the popular vote?  

When running against Hillary Clinton in 2016, Donald Trump lost the popular vote despite winning the Electoral College, receiving just under 63 million votes. This time around, however, Trump won both the electoral college and the popular vote, now with over 74 million supporters.

So, in the eight years since his first campaign, what persuaded over half of America to believe Donald Trump is the right man for the job? 

The answer is most certainly not his character: Trump is a convicted felon with 34 charges, a documented sexual assaulter and is openly racist against countless marginalized and oppressed groups. The answer cannot be his economic policies: the Peterson Institute for International Economics estimates Trump’s proposed tariffs will lower the income of all Americans, and most significantly impact lower-income households. Nor his leadership capabilities: Trump has suggested using the military against anyone he deems an “enemy” and incited an insurrection.  

I am left to wonder just what, exactly, the American public saw in our soon-to-be 47th President. The average American no longer cares about the President’s moral character or the financial stability of anyone not in the top 1%. There’s obviously some other reason half the country cast their vote for Donald Trump that I—and the Democratic Party—have yet to discover.