Election Stress Disorder is a thing, and it affects people equally regardless of party. Some 68% of Americans say the 2020 election was a significant source of stress in their lives.
That stress isn’t going away. Look at the angst-filled quotes from voters, with each side predicting Armageddon if the other side wins.
What’s going on? Close races, partisan vitriol, and the constant stream of information all lead to voter anxiety.
“If you’re into politics, you tend to see the stakes as pretty high,” Lee Hannah, an associate professor of political science at Wright State University, said. “You tend to have a wealth of information at your disposal. If you’re not careful, you can just kind of obsess over it until the end; it’s pretty easy to do.”
I used to obsess. I looked at every poll as soon as I received an alert. I scoured dozens news sources daily to see which ones predicted my preferred political outcomes and bounced back and forth between all sorts of information outlets.
It doesn’t help that everywhere you turn, campaign propaganda slaps you in the face. Yard signs. Mailers. Candidates walking through neighborhoods. Try to watch an Ohio State, Bengals, or Browns game, and you’ll see some ad telling you Ohio will sink into the depths of hell if so-and-so gets elected.
Even people who support candidates who appear to be far ahead seem anxious. “You never know, not until the votes are counted, that type of mentality,” Hannah said.
I’m sure there’s also anxiety among those who support the Big Lie and election deniers looking for an excuse to yell, “fraud!” (They already are).
I follow politics and elections closely, but I don’t watch wall-to-wall coverage on any cable network. It’s all biased one way or the other, and I’ve had it.
But I do use a few sources I believe do their best to present information and analysis so I can make up my mind. I find the POTUS channel on SIRUS to be an outstanding source of moderation (I listen to the guests, not the calls. Those are as nutty cuckoo as the cable stations).
For reading, I subscribe to two excellent daily newsletters, one from the radio and TV host Michael Smerconish and the other called Wide World of News from the superb political analyst Mark Halperin. I read the Wall Street Journal because, as much as I love the New York Times and Washington Post, I think the WSJ’s non-opinion coverage is slightly more balanced.
For local races, I look at the League of Women Voters Guide to see where candidates stand on issues. Local races, to me, are in many ways more important than state and federal. The locals need to figure out police and fire protection; strategies to keep communities vibrant; make financial decisions, and more.
That’s what I look at. No sitting in front of the television and consuming every bit of content that hits the airwaves. I have looked at polls, just a couple of times, from two races that have my attention — Ryan vs. Vance here in Ohio and the Oregon governor’s race, which could flip to Republican for the first time since 1987.
While I’m curious about those outcomes, I’m most invested in the Ohio Supreme Court race because it will determine whether Ohio’s move toward authoritarianism continues (see: redistricting and snubbing the will of the voters) or we’ll have a more balanced court that might provide the checks and balances a democracy needs.
And one final plea. Please encourage everyone you know to go to the polls if they haven’t already. Elections have consequences.
You can pay attention to elections and politics and get the necessary information to make an informed decision without falling prey to Election Stress Disorder. The election is over Tuesday. And you know what that means?
The jockeying for the 2024 presidential election starts Wednesday.
Oh, goodie.
Ray Marcano’s column appears on these pages each Sunday. He can be reached at raymarcanoddn@gmail.com.
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