Donald J. Trump is going to be the 47th president of the United States. A historic win for several reasons—this is first time since 1892 that a US president has served two non-consecutive terms, Trump is the oldest person to be elected president, the first president to be convicted of felony and the only president to have faced impeachment proceedings twice. Above all, this win is historic because of the scale and impact of his political comeback. Written off four years ago after his loss to Joe Biden, Trump bided his time and came back with a staggering majority, clinching the House, Senate and the presidency for the Republicans. He also won the popular vote—cementing himself as a populist who united Americans. “They (voters) came from all quarters. Union, non-union, African American, Hispanic American,” Trump announced to a roaring crowd after his win. “We had everybody, and it was beautiful.” Clearly, Trump has painted the town red!
The Democrats probably expected a defeat in the final hours leading to the election, as several polls predicted a narrow margin between Trump and incumbent Vice President Kamala Devi Harris. But they didn’t (and couldn’t) visualise a landslide victory and the overturning of several swing states like Michigan, Pennsylvania and Arizona in Trump’s favour. Several counties that were typically blue were overturned, too—marking the demolition of the Democratic Party in every way possible. This leads me to ask—how did we get here?
An Election Fought by–and Won by—Men
The mood among women in my yoga studio in San Francisco on Thursday was somber. All I could hear was chatter about how men hated women in America and how this election clearly proves that patriarchy will prevail. The data is sobering as well—men across races overwhelmingly voted for Trump, signalling a deeper frustration among men that clearly wasn’t addressed by the Democratic Party. Harris’ push for abortion rights for women towards the tail end of her campaign probably alienated more men, especially the conservative ones, who believe a woman’s right to her body is a state issue, not a personal one. But this election reflects a larger rift in America between men and women.
Several research organisations have repeatedly raised the alarm on rising illiteracy among men in the US, as more diversity and inclusion (D&I) initiatives benefit women in universities and the workforce. Women have outpaced men everywhere. According to data from the ‘Chronicle of Higher Education’, women comprised 58% of all college students in 2020, up from 56.6% in 2014. In 2021, men received 42% of Bachelor’s degrees awarded in the US, the lowest male share on record. The natural course of action for a woman who is independent and earning her own money is to seek autonomy over her body. And many women are now choosing to not have children. Rising rates of education in women has lowered the birth rate in the US. The general fertility rate in the US reached a historic low in 2022.
America is also grappling with another issue that has caused a deep rift in society—one’s ability to choose one’s gender. More men are being relegated to the sidelines as there are calls to get rid of the supremacy of “White, straight men” and spaces where economic mobility is possible, such as colleges and white-collar jobs, are heavily geared towards boosting diversity in enrolment. Those who identify as a cis, straight white man are unfavourable in elite spaces. These spaces are now heavily geared towards women and members of the LGBTQ+ community —a major vote base for the Democratic Party.
Men like Elon Musk have capitalised on this increasing frustration among men and started a dangerous trend of bringing back ‘‘alpha males’’. Musk has gone as far as amplifying a theory that only “alpha males” should make decisions, as women and “low testosterone men” are malleable. The Republican Party slowly refashioned itself as a party that would bring back economic parity for men and give them control over women. Republicans also used growing frustration against transgender persons to further alienate men and get their votes. Issues such as participation of transgender women in women’s sports became a major issue, as more people started questioning what it really means to be a “woman”. Young men ultimately geared towards Trump in this election, along with Latino men, who are religiously conservative and do not want women to have a say over abortion.
Social media also became a closed space in this election, as those with differing political opinions moved to the platforms where their voices would be amplified. This led to a dangerous situation where trends like “trad wife”—of women bringing back the trope of the traditional, dependent wife—grabbed people’s attention. Women were openly vilified for becoming ‘manly’ and harbouring aspirations for careers and autonomy. Added to this was also a silent majority of women who were supporting Trump—because Harris’ race and the economy were issues for them.
The Free Speech Problem
When I first moved to the US three years ago, I was enamoured by the possibility of being my real self. I was excited about the First Amendment, and wanted to uphold it like every other journalist in the US. The only issue was that free speech wasn’t really free. I slowly understood that free speech meant saying the ‘right’ things that geared towards certain social tropes and expectations, and those who harboured different views either stayed quiet or in their own spaces. People were getting cancelled left, right and centre and celebrities were being scrutinised for every word they sent out on social media. Journalists were targeted for tweets they posted decades ago and companies slowly started monitoring social media activity to prevent anything acrimonious that would hurt their public image. I was being controlled. So, I was clearly not surprised when billionaires like Musk bought Twitter (now X) to ‘bring back free speech’. Musk wasn’t bringing back free speech, but his views on free speech were not completely wrong. We were stifling those who didn’t agree with the views of a few.
America’s biggest media houses played a major role in propelling the cancel culture and excluding journalists who held differing views. Many of them also predicted Harris’ lead in the elections incorrectly—prompting many to believe this was an attempt to fool people into voting for the Democrats. A major controversy erupted ahead of the election when Trump sued CBS News for distorting an interview of Harris’ to confuse the public ahead of the election. When CBS had aired a preview of the interview, Harris was seen giving a wordy answer when asked about Israeli Premier Benjamin Netanyahu and the war in Gaza. When the full interview was aired, Harris’ answer was shortened. News organisations are already struggling with public trust after being called out for biased reporting on the Gaza war. They have further alienated people by not staying true to their core values of unbiased reporting.
When you push people away, they will get frustrated with you and vote you out. And unfortunately, Harris was held accountable for the Biden administration’s misgivings.
Harris Was Not the Best Candidate for America
A significant reason for Trump’s staggering win was the Biden-Harris administration’s poor management of the US economy. Biden was handed a bad deal when he took over from Trump in 2021, but he couldn’t control soaring prices, rising housing costs or evade a growing crisis on the US border. His administration also backed a war in Gaza that has led to the death of millions—mostly women and children. For most Americans, Harris was simply a representative of the last government and her consistent support for Biden clearly showcases a lack of understanding of emotions on the ground.
Harris did get a raw deal when Biden dropped out of the race in July, not giving her enough time to prepare for a presidential election, but since July, she has done little to make people feel confident that she would be a good president. She didn’t budge on Gaza till the very end, didn’t offer solid solutions to improve the economy and didn’t appeal to voters distressed about illegal immigration. Harris clearly forgot that the Democrats were the first to coin the phrase, “It’s the economy, stupid.”
It’s true that misogyny and racism still reign big in America and the two were big reasons why she wasn’t elected. But Harris clearly wasn’t the right candidate. Her massive loss points to a wider issue within the Democratic Party. The party needs to figure out what and who it stands stand for and finding its footing back will be extremely hard after this carnage. For Indians, this is a well-known scenario.
(Views expressed are personal)
Ankita M. Kumar is a journalist and a documentary filmmaker based in San Francisco, California
(This appeared in the print as 'Divine Kingship')
