How 2020 Changed US Elections Forever
With visibility and accountability of politicians increased, resurfacing of humanitarian issues and more tools available to the voting populous to cast their vote, future elections will only continue to produce record numbers.
2020 will be a year that no one ever forgets. It feels like it has flown by in 2 weeks, or dragged on for 10 years, depending on the day.
The Pope slapped a lady’s hand on New Year's Eve and it has been downhill from there. Australian brush fires raged, World War 3 was threatened, Harry and Meghan quit the royal family, Kobe died tragically, and the President of the United States was impeached and acquitted. That was actually all just in January and February.
It seems safe to state that everyone is aware of the timeline between March and November.
Here are the major events and subsequent effects in 2020 that shaped the election and will continue to do the same in the future.
1. Humanitarian Issues
Potentially the biggest upending of daily life worldwide in generations, the COVID-19 pandemic spread throughout most of the globe, leaving hundreds of thousands of people dead and many more facing long term complications.
Adding in the civil unrest with protests and counter-protests over racial injustice, police brutality, and LGBTQ+ communities, 2020 will go down as one of the more tumultuous years in recent memory. To top it all off? We had a Presidential election to sort out. Surely this would be something that could help bring the country together and inspire hope within the population. Right?
While we have had tons of contentious Presidential elections in our country’s history, 2020 seemed to add that extra bit of weight that may have resulted in changes to the way we go about our elections in the future.
Possibilities are seen with completely changing the way we cast our vote, to media coverage and controversy within an election's legitimacy. We also see the conversation of doing away with gerrymandering and retiring the electoral college surfacing once again.
2. Political Platforms
Twitter is a huge platform for President Trump, nearly all major politicians and hopefuls have followed suit. It has become a way to instantaneously connect with the American (and global) population.
Many issues have become uncovered with this route, as Twitter now attempts to label misinformation as the influence of Tweets can literally send communities into a frenzy; all the while not being confirmed as truthful.
This is not really a partisan issue either, though the President has seen much scrutiny over Tweets. The DOJ of this administration has claimed that the President’s Tweets are both official White House Communication as well as “personal conduct that is not an exercise of state power.”
3. The Young Vote
Considering the fact that so much communication now takes place online, the 2020 US elections brought a certain population front and center: the young vote.
It is no secret that Gen-Z and Millennials are a tech-savvy bunch and with their wide usage of social media, messages became more powerful and more widespread in less time than ever before elections passed. Everything Tweeted or posted by politicians is now so readily accessible, re-readable, and able to be saved forever.
There are always vast efforts to get young voters out to the polls, but 2020 may have surpassed all previous efforts when looking at the final result of the election. It also gives great insight into the population's reaction to the relatively starkly contrasted candidates who ran this election cycle.
More votes were cast among all voters in this general election than any previous election in US history. This returned an upward trend in overall votes cast that the country had seen prior to the 2008 elections as well.
4. Early Ballots
A record number of mail-in and absentee ballots were also cast in the 2020 election cycle. The pandemic had a lot to do with that. However, since Election Day in the US occurs on a Tuesday - a workday for most - it comes as a surprise that many voters are unable to make it to the polls on Election Day.
As a result, this election saw an unprecedented amount of voters cast their way in an alternate fashion. Many voters became educated on these options this year, as they may not have been widely made available in the past.
All of these factors, among many others, surely changed the way elections will function in the US going forward. 2024 will be a very different time compared to 2020, however, make no mistake, this year will never be forgotten.
Opinions and Perspectives
The article really captures the historic nature of the election and its lasting impact.
As someone who works in tech, I'm excited about the future possibilities for secure digital voting.
The statistics about record turnout are impressive, but we still have work to do.
This was definitely a turning point for US elections. No doubt about that.
The technological advances were necessary, but we can't forget about digital divide issues.
Never seen my community so engaged in an election before. The accessibility really made a difference.
The article misses how these changes affected rural communities differently than urban ones.
Watching my parents navigate new voting methods was both challenging and inspiring.
The timeline of events really puts things in perspective. What a year it was.
These changes made voting possible for many disabled voters like myself. Hope they stay permanent.
The article's point about gerrymandering is crucial. We need to address this moving forward.
Social media definitely played a huge role, but let's not forget traditional media's influence too.
The focus on humanitarian issues really resonates with me. It wasn't just about politics anymore.
As a poll worker, I saw firsthand how these changes affected voter turnout in my community.
I appreciate the historical context provided in the article. Really helps put these changes in perspective.
We shouldn't overlook how these changes affected local elections too. The impact went way beyond the presidential race.
The pandemic pushed us 10 years into the future regarding election technology. No going back now.
Interesting how the article connects social media influence with youth voter turnout. That correlation seems spot on.
As someone who had COVID during the election, mail-in voting was my only option. These changes matter.
The article glosses over the partisan divide on voting methods. That's still a huge issue we need to address.
Remember when we thought electronic voting machines were controversial? Now look how far we've come.
The impact on minority communities was significant. I saw more first-time voters than ever before.
My local polling place handled the changes amazingly well. The staff deserves so much credit.
I'm worried these changes are permanent. Sometimes traditional methods exist for good reasons.
This article perfectly captures how 2020 forced us to rethink everything about our election process.
The shift in political communication styles was fascinating to watch. Politicians had to completely rethink their approach.
True about the young vote, but we shouldn't forget how many older voters adapted to new voting methods too.
The article makes a good point about accessibility, but what about voters without internet access? We're leaving some people behind.
Sorry, but I strongly disagree. The changes made our system more vulnerable, not stronger.
My biggest takeaway from 2020 was how resilient our democracy proved to be, despite all the challenges.
The crisis really pushed us to modernize our voting systems. We should have done this years ago.
I found it interesting that the article didn't mention the impact on rural voters. Our experience was quite different from urban areas.
Looking back, it's amazing how much technology influenced the election. From social media campaigns to digital voter registration, everything changed.
Early voting was a game-changer for me. I don't understand why we haven't always had these options available.
Working at the polls in 2020 was eye-opening. The mix of traditional and new voting methods created some real challenges for us.
The part about humanitarian issues resonates with me. Never seen so many people motivated to vote because of social justice concerns.
Let's be honest, 2020 exposed major flaws in our electoral system. We need serious reforms before 2024.
I have to disagree with the article's optimistic tone about Twitter's role. It's become a cesspool of political hatred and division.
The young vote statistics are fascinating. My daughter and her friends were so engaged in the process, it really gave me hope for future elections.
Anyone else notice how the pandemic actually made voting more accessible? It forced states to offer more options, which benefited so many people.
This article downplays the security concerns with mail-in voting. I worked as an election official, and there are definitely challenges we need to address.
The surge in young voter turnout was incredible to witness. I work at a university, and the energy among students during the election was unlike anything I've seen before.
Not sure I agree about social media being helpful. I've seen so much misinformation spread like wildfire. We need better fact-checking systems.
My first time voting was in 2020, and honestly, the process was much easier than I expected. Social media really helped me understand where to go and what to do.
The article makes a great point about social media's impact. I've noticed how quickly information spreads now, both good and bad. It's changed how we consume political information completely.
While I appreciate the convenience of mail-in voting, I'm concerned about the security implications. We need to ensure our election integrity isn't compromised.
I never thought I'd see such dramatic changes to our voting system in my lifetime. The shift to mail-in ballots really made voting more accessible for me and my elderly parents.