Graphic by Nate Barton
When this article is published, there will still be several days left until the election. But soon, (Tuesday to be exact) the day will arrive where the United States will finally determine who will sit on the Iron Throne — I mean, in the Oval Office. Excuse the Freudian slip, but sometimes this election has felt about as bloody as “Game of Thrones.”
Seventy percent of Democrats said Republicans are closed-minded, 42 percent said Republicans are dishonest, and 35 percent said Republicans are immoral, according to the Pew Research Center’s study, “Partisanship and Political Animosity in 2016” published June 22. And Republicans don’t have a very positive view of Democrats either, with 52 percent saying Democrats are closed-minded, 47 percent claiming Democrats are immoral and 46 percent are lazy.
This study goes on to point out that, for the first time since surveys all the way back to 1992, majorities in both parties have unfavorable views of the other party. Of the Republicans surveyed, 91 percent view the Democratic party unfavorably, and 58 percent view them very unfavorably. Of the Democrats surveyed, 86 percent of them view the Republican party unfavorably, and 55 percent view the Republican party very unfavorably. This is especially concerning when compared to 1994, when only 16 percent of Democrats and 17 percent of Republicans had a very unfavorable view of the other.
To sum that data up: this election is a mess, people hate each other more so than usual and the end is so near we can taste it but somehow still too far away to handle.
Interim Chairperson of the Democratic National Committee Donna Brazile spoke for us all when she tweeted on Oct. 30, “Please God, let this end soon.” All that said, here’s a non-comprehensive list of what I’m most looking forward to post-this-election-cycle-from-hell-2K16.
Family dinners. The big one, Thanksgiving, is right around the corner, and as always, it promises tons of loaded questions and debates (about the election and not). Although I’m not excited about the series of “What will you do with your degree?” or “Do you have a boyfriend yet?” questions I’m bound to receive, at least discussions about the election can all be ended with a resounding, “Yeah, but ___ won so it doesn’t matter anyway.”
I’m really excited not to hear Trump’s name, voice or see his face on TV all the time. With every major news network currently sounding more like a series of Trump roasts rather than actual news, we’ve missed out on a lot of news unrelated to whose genitals Trump has reportedly grabbed. For example, did you know Venezuela is currently in chaos, that South Korean protestors are demanding their president’s resignation, or that ISIS has recently executed 232 people? If you did, I’m proud of you, but if you didn’t, I really can’t really fault you.
I’m also really pumped not to be as terrified of Facebook comment threads. As vitriolic as they usually are, they’ve gotten especially bad this election season, since people continue to believe that they can either change someone’s opinion on the election via the Internet or if they can’t, at least they can get really riled up and angry about the world in the process.
Lastly (for the sake of this article anyway), I’m excited to see what “SNL” and late night talk shows can come up with, now that one of their main sources of content fodder is quickly disappearing. (Although, with the rumored creation of Trump TV, this election might just be the gift that keeps on giving.)
But regardless of what side of the aisle you’re on, I think many of us can agree that come Nov. 8, win or lose, at least we can say we’ve survived this mess of a year and this bigger mess of an election — so let’s drink (apple cider?) to that.
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