The Echo conducted an election feedback survey following the results of the 2024 General Election. The survey was active from Nov. 12 to Nov. 15, and was open to all Cal Lutheran faculty, staff, and students.
The survey was hosted on a Google Form, and was shared in The Echo’s weekly newsletter and on The Echo’s official Instagram page. The survey collected a total of 36 responses, and contained one free response question for respondents to answer: “How do you feel about the results of the 2024 Election?”
Of the responses, three were from faculty members, 12 were from staff, and 21 were from students. Of the total number of responses, 8.6% said they did not vote in the general election. The Echo Editorial Staff interpreted responses by categorizing each into one of three categories: Negative, Positive, or Neutral. The results of this survey do not reflect the feelings of the entire university.
100% of faculty reacted negatively to the result of the 2024 general election. 91.7% of staff shared a negative reaction, while 8.3% felt neutral. 66.7% of students shared a negative reaction to the election results, 19% of student respondents reacted positively, and 14.3% reacted neutral.
Responses shared in this article are lifted verbatim from the survey results.
Optimism
Multiple respondents said they felt optimistic following the results of the election.
“I feel extremely grateful, relieved, and happy. I am optimistic for the next 4 years in the USA.”
“Great, I am happy with the outcome.”
“I feel extremely grateful, relieved, and happy. I am optimistic for the next 4 years in the USA.”
“I am very happy that President Trump won. He has survived 2 assassination attempts and works so incredibly hard for EVERY American even after everything he has been through. Now is time for unity!”
Disappointment
Multiple respondents said they felt disappointed by the results of the 2024 Election.
“Disappointed and heartbroken that a majority of fellow citizens supported a known criminal who puts national security at risk with abandon (documents case), who openly defies our constitution (Jan 6), and who rejects climate change as a hoax. This support apparently is inflation driven, but it can be contended that racism and misogyny played a part.”
“I am disappointed, both at the national level but also at the local level.”
“I feel extremely disheartened and disappointed in the American people for being seduced by a campaign built on division, hate, name-calling, and lies.”
“I have heard that what ended up being the biggest issue for many people was the economy, and it was interesting to see how many people do not understand that foreign companies do not pay the tariffs, and that they will actually directly increase the prices of products despite what the Trump campaign claims.”
“I feel very disappointed and honestly appalled by the stupidity of my country.”
Uncertain Future
Multiple respondents said they felt anxious following the results of the election.
“Upset, devastated, afraid, just to name a few. I feel unsure about my future and of those around me, I’ll have to put my trust in governor Newsom to protect california.”
“Concerned and unhappy. Not the result I/we were hoping for. As a woman, with daughters,
I am concerned for our futures.”
“Very badly. It makes me disappointed and scared for the future of the country.”
“Disappointed and anxious about the future of our country and the world, but grateful to live in California.”
Polarization
According to a study conducted by Pew Research Center, Democrats or those who lean Democrat feel less optimistic about the party’s future, while Republicans or those who lean Republican feel more optimistic about their party’s future. According to the study, the partisan gap, which details how Republicans and Democrats view their respective party’s future, grew to 35 percentage points following the 2024 General Election. This gap is much larger than when compared to any other recent election in the study.
Professor of Communication Ryan Medders said an increase in polarization may be partly due to shifts in the electorate over the last 20 years.
“We have noticed that there’s some polarization going on in the electorate,” Medders said. “We’ve always had these cycles throughout the years, but since the 1990s we’ve seen a shift in the national dialogue to be more combative.”
Medders said this more combative trend of national dialogue may be a contributing factor as to why people may be more inclined to want to find group identity in politics. Medders also said centrist politicians have increasingly expressed that they don’t “fit in” with colleagues in the House of Representatives or Senate.
“Some of that comes from, they’re being primaried by more extreme candidates on either side, and by extreme I mean more polarized. They’re shifting more away from the center.”
Medders said the increase in polarization has created an environment where there is less middle-ground for politicians to stand on, leading to less centrist politics.
“We’re seeing fewer and fewer centrist politicians who are able to kind of bridge the divide, and that can come from the electorate… or it can come from the parties themselves and how they’re shifting,” Medders said.
Medders said that teaching political communication elicits “mixed emotions” amongst students following each presidential election cycle.
“Some students are really happy, some students are really sad,” Medders said. “If you’re happy, stay engaged and make sure that policies are followed through on … And I told those students who weren’t happy, when you’re ready, get engaged, and make sure that the issues you care about are being addressed.”
