US election
Joe Biden has won the election and now presides over a nation that is bitterly divided.
Strikingly, millions more Americans backed Trump this time than in 2016, despite one of the deadliest COVID-19 outbreaks in the world and the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression.
How has this happened? And what comes next?
openDemocracy has spoken to countless voters across the US, as well as experts, organisers and candidates to find out.
Podcast: How Democrats won Georgia – and what happens now
Travelling across Georgia, we saw a radically different way of doing politics. The violence in DC should not obscure this story. And Democrats must learn from it.
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Published in:HomeTrump’s legacy isn’t just violence and QAnon. It’s a broken information system
Talking to voters across the US, from gentle MAGA moms to armed militias, it’s clear why Trumpism has taken a deep...
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Published in:ourEconomyTo fix the US, President Biden must listen to those who put him in power
An unprecedented grassroots mobilisation removed Donald Trump from the White House. The incoming president would be...
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Published in:ourEconomy: FeatureSix ways Donald Trump can still be brought to justice
The impeachment trial may have failed, but the former president has multiple legal battles ahead of him
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Published in:50.50: OpinionTrump’s allies threaten rights globally – US impeachment won’t change that
The ultra-conservative networks that supported Trump are playing long games with global ambitions. Their threat to...
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Published in:Dark Money Investigations: OpinionUS is paying for letting dark money and disinformation run riot
Billionaires such as Charles Koch spent a fortune convincing ordinary Americans to doubt everything - they shouldn't...
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Published in:50.50: InvestigationRevealed: US Capitol protesters are still fundraising via Amazon and PayPal
Tech giants are under pressure to ‘sever all ties to hate groups and white supremacists’.
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Published in:50.50: Investigation‘Christian nationalists’ accused of violating law in Georgia elections
Democrats won the critical Senate runoff races. But did evangelical groups ‘cross a legal line’ in trying to keep...
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Published in:HomeDemocrats control the Senate. Now they must learn why they won
With Washington in violent turmoil, Georgia’s historic result provides a model for rebuilding trust in a broken...
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Published in:50.50These are the women of colour who took down Trump
States like Georgia don’t flip themselves. Meet some of the women whose grassroots organising enabled the Democratic victory.
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Published in:ourEconomySix charts that reveal America’s deep divides
The US election is the most divisive in decades. But the fractures running through US society long predate COVID-19.
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Published in:ourEconomy: OpinionTrump won more Latino voters in 2020 – how can Democrats win them back?
Democrats must build a narrative that coalesces the multi-racial, multi-generational working class around popular...
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Published in:Home: OpinionWill Trump push Democrats to victory in Georgia?
In Trump country, the president’s war with facts and his own party is causing chaos – but not as Democrats might hope.
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Published in:50.50: InvestigationDozens of anti-LGBT groups fundraising on Amazon despite equality pledges
Revealed: Online shopping giant – whose profits have soared during COVID-19 – has given a platform for many US...
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Published in:Home: OpinionI never thought Democrats could win Georgia. Could it happen twice?
The critical Senate run-off race is too close to call. But a massive voter mobilisation effort may just tip the balance.
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Published in:ourEconomy: InterviewPodcast: Andra Gillespie on Georgia’s Senate runoffs
In an extended conversation, the Atlanta based political scientist outlines why the traditionally Republican state...
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Published in:Podcasts: AnalysisPodcast: Who will win Georgia’s Senate races?
Biden’s presidency hinges on this crucial vote – and it’s too close to call.
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Published in:Home: OpinionTrump lost the election, but he won the online disinformation war
Social media platforms have allowed US conservatives to delegitimise the election and sow mistrust of democracy.
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Published in:50.50Undercover with the US conservatives who trained Mike Pence
This is how the architects of America’s culture wars are trying to export their tactics to Europe.
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Published in:Home: OpinionPhiladelphia to Biden: ‘If every vote counts, why not every life?’
Racial justice activists in this city have a plan – and it includes both Democrats and Republicans.
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Published in:50.50: InvestigationTrump’s top lawyer in ‘crusade’ against women’s and LGBT rights across Europe
Exclusive: Jay Sekulow among US Christian right activists who backed Poland’s ‘draconian’ new abortion restrictions...
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Published in:Home: OpinionAmericans didn’t vote for change. For many, it wasn’t on the ballot
Despite Biden’s likely win, the Democratic establishment was crushed. Why?
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Published in:HomeHow the Republicans are stealing Georgia
Hundreds of thousands of people of colour have had their names erased from the voter list in this vital state.
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Published in:Home: OpinionIf Biden wants to heal US divisions, he’ll have to start with his own side
Everything points to polarisation getting worse. The good news is that we understand why it happens – and how we can...
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Published in:democraciaAbierta: OpinionFor Donald Trump, his defeat will be fake news
Trump threatened to deny his defeat and challenged the ballot box because it probably won't accommodate his desires....
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Published in:Home: OpinionThe US will never get a Vietnam veteran as president
Every president from 1952-1992 was a WWII veteran. But this year, yet another draft-dodger will win.
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Published in:Home: OpinionTrump started a war against safe spaces, but then pledged to ‘Make America Safe Again’
Conservatives have a long history of advocating for safe spaces when it suits them and exploiting them when it doesn't.
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Published in:ourEconomyJecorey Arthur: I grew up in the ‘capital of American racism’
Podcast: The youngest person ever to be elected to the Louisville City Council calls for reparations for the...
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Published in:democraciaAbiertaUS Venezuelans: for Biden or Trump?
A Republican or Democrat president will not influence Venezuela the way most Venezuelans expect it to. We know how...
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Published in:HomeUS elections 2020 in video
All our interviews and on-the-ground coverage of the last few days of the campaign – and what comes next.
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Published in:Home: Opinion‘Stop voting from a place of fear’ – the other candidates deserve a hearing
The Green and Libertarian candidates for US president don’t agree on much. But they do agree US politics is broken.
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Published in:HomeWelcome to Trump country: ‘We’re the silent majority’
Why is Trump winning support in this rural Kentucky town? Human trafficking, world peace – and ‘Antifa’.
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Published in:Transformation: OpinionThe dangerous psychology of Donald Trump
The last four years provide a roadmap that shows how the personal and the political can combine to disastrous effect.
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Published in:HomeFrom the streets in Louisville: ‘No justice, No Halloween’
In the city where police killed Breonna Taylor, Black Lives Matter have protested for months. They want change, they...
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Published in:Podcasts: AnalysisUS election podcast: ‘We want change, not Biden’
From race to a broken political system, the story of Louisville is in many ways the story of America.
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Published in:ourEconomy: OpinionWhat the US election means for Puerto Rico's fight for democracy and dignity
Puerto Ricans have much to gain and much to lose on 3 November.
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Published in:Home: OpinionBob Peoples: ‘We need change in the whole democratic system’
A legend of the Appalachian Trail calls on his generation to hand over power.
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Published in:ourEconomyThis election can’t contain the rage of young Americans
In the most important election in my lifetime, who speaks for my generation?
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Published in:HomeTrump will lose. The problem is what comes next
Across the country, people tell me they back racial equality, LGBTIQ and abortion rights, and believe in climate...
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Published in:Transformation: OpinionDonald Trump and the banality of evil
Emptiness, lack of character and a fundamental unwillingness to take responsibility lurk at evil’s core.
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Published in:Transformation: OpinionFascism in America
Words matter. We must call what is happening in the US by its true name.
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Published in:Home: OpinionBehind Trump’s lies is a hard truth about the US
And under Biden’s truths is a lie.
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Published in:TransformationMr. Vice-President, I am speaking
How a culture of interruption disadvantages women in politics.
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Published in:Transformation: OpinionThe five real conspiracies you need to know about
While millions of people are spellbound by falsehoods, actual threats go unheeded and unchecked.
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Published in:Transformation: OpinionHow to stop a coup in America
Here are ten ways to make sure democracy is respected in the US Presidential Election.
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Published in:democraciaAbiertaUS election: Latinos lean Democratic, but Biden can’t take their vote for granted
Democratic candidates must focus on policy and address the specific issues affecting Latino communities if they want...
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Published in:Transformation: OpinionEmpire of resentment
Emotions can be politically transformative; just look at Donald Trump and his supporters.
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Published in:Home: OpinionWhy I’m voting for Donald Trump
I voted for Barack Obama twice, then reluctantly for Trump. This time I’m more convinced he’s the right choice. Here’s why.
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Published in:Home: OpinionWhy isn’t Donald trumpeting his foreign policy record?
Afghanistan, North Korea, ISIS, Israel and the Gulf States: they’re at best partial successes, but that never...
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Published in:ourEconomy: OpinionFor Joe Biden to sway young voters, he must be held accountable
Young people have inherited a world in crisis and the former vice president bears responsibility for some of their...
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Published in:ourEconomySamelys López: “The South Bronx has a spirit of resiliency that defines us as a community”
Running for Congress to represent the South Bronx, Samelys López tells ourEconomy that political representation...
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Published in:ourEconomy: OpinionFrom the streets to the ballot box: New York’s political revolution
Alongside a wave of insurgent progressive candidates, New York’s primary elections ushered in a mandate for radical change.
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Published in:ourEconomyLawrence Hamm: "The progressive movement must continue to push forward within the electoral arena"
Longtime activist Lawrence Hamm discusses the Black Lives Matter protests across the US and his bid to unseat...
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Published in:ourEconomyBhaskar Sunkara on democratic socialism and the 2020 election
On the latest episode of ourVoices, we spoke with Jacobin founder Bhaskar Sunkara about the future of the Democratic party.
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Published in:ourEconomyShahid Buttar: “Nancy Pelosi stands, as she always has, on the side of the past”
Seeking to unseat the most powerful Democrat in DC, Shahid Buttar discusses the urgency of overhauling a corrupt US...
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Published in:ourEconomyLauren Ashcraft: “This is the home of billionaire row and thousands of people are sleeping on the street”
Seeking to represent New York’s 12th congressional district, Lauren Ashcraft is challenging long serving Democratic...
ourVoices specials
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Published in:Podcasts: AnalysisPodcast: How Democrats won Georgia – and what happens now
Travelling across Georgia, we saw a radically different way of doing politics. The violence in DC should not obscure...
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Published in:Podcasts: AnalysisPodcast: Who will win Georgia’s Senate races?
Biden’s presidency hinges on this crucial vote – and it’s too close to call.
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Published in:Podcasts: AnalysisUS election podcast: Can Biden deliver?
On the road across middle America, voters told us they want the country to heal. But is this even possible?
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Published in:Podcasts: AnalysisUS election podcast: ‘We want change, not Biden’
From race to a broken political system, the story of Louisville is in many ways the story of America.
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Published in:PodcastsPodcast: US election special #4 – Why does the US not have universal healthcare?
In the latest ourVoices documentary, we place the movement for Medicare-for-All in the context of decades of...
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Published in:PodcastsPodcast: US election special #3 – the housing crisis (part 2)
In the latest ourVoices documentary, we explore how social movements are reshaping the political discourse on...
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Published in:Podcasts: AnalysisPodcast: US election special #3 – the housing crisis (part 1)
In the third installment of our podcast series on the US election, we explore the history of discrimination and...
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Published in:PodcastsPodcast: US election special #2 – the Green New Deal
In the second part of our podcast series on the US election, we explore the influence of the fossil fuel industry...
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Published in:Podcasts: AnalysisPodcast: US election special #1 – the military-industrial complex
In the first part of ourVoice’s special series on the US election, we explore the influence of the...