Focus on immigration, economy paved way for Trump’s comeback
Donald Trump has scored a decisive victory in a deeply divided nation. In doing so, the Republican president-elect has exposed a fundamental weakness within the Democratic base and beat back concerns about his moral failings, becoming the first US president with a felony conviction.
The former president won over frustrated voters with promises to improve economy, block the flow of immigrants on the Southern border and his call to “Make America Great Again”. He appealed to religious voters by seizing on the Democrats’ support for the trans-gender community.
His claims — ‘America-first’ economic populism and conservative culture would make voters’ lives better — will be tested immediately. But his plans for mass deportations and huge tariffs may hurt the very people who enabled his victory.
Trump is set to enter the White House on January 20, 2025. With votes still being counted, he could become the first Republican in two decades to win the popular vote.
With modest shifts, Trump undermined the Democrats’ coalition of Black voters, who have been the bedrock of the Democratic Party. In recent years, Latinos and young voters have also joined them. All three groups still preferred Democrat Kamala Harris, but preliminary data from AP VoteCast, a nationwide survey of more than 1,15,000 voters, suggested that Trump had made significant gains.
Conviction not an issue
Incomplete returns show that Trump’s criminal convictions, additional pending indictments and any concerns over his most incendiary rhetoric simply were not a sufficient concern to keep tens of millions of Americans from voting for him. Besides, Trump may never actually face sentencing in a New York business fraud case in which he was convicted of 34 felonies.
Inflation key poll plank
Around half of Trump voters said inflation was the biggest issue that determined their election decisions. About as many said that about the situation at the US-Mexico border, according to AP VoteCast. He has promised the largest mass deportation effort in US history, and threatened to impose massive tariffs on key products from China and other American adversaries.
Biden’s dismal rating
Despite voters’ frustration and Biden’s dismal approval rating, Kamala Harris never distanced herself from her party’s sitting president.
Beating abortion concerns
It was the first presidential election after the Supreme Court overturned Roe vs Wade and ended a woman’s national right to terminate a pregnancy. It was also the first time that a Republican presidential candidate overly courted males with a hypermasculine approach. But the “gender gap” that resulted was not enough to sink Trump. About half of women backed Harris, while about half of men went for Trump, according to AP VoteCast.
