10 Election Stories That Kept Us Sane in 2020

Our 2020 Year in Review series of lists – beginning with “10 Pieces of COVID-19 News We All Paid Attention to in 2020” – spotlights Harris news, accomplishments, and perspectives from across our community in a year unlike any other.

The 2020 presidential election in the United States was bound to be one for the history books following the contentious 2016 election, Donald Trump’s unexpected victory, and his norm-shattering presidency – yet, as with all things, 2020 threw us several curveballs along the way. Here are a few of the stories featuring our experts at Harris this year:

1. Harris’ new podcast

Have you ever wanted to delve a little more deeply into the political moment we live in – not just through opinion and anecdotes, but rigorous scholarship, massive data sets, and a deep understanding of what has actually has happened? On January 29, Harris’ new podcast, “Not Another Politics Podcast,” began its run, hosted by three scholars from the University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy who explore what the most important political research really tells us about the issues that are so often fiercely debated – and often times obscured or misunderstood – within our government and our broader society.

The hosts had some fun on Facebook Live, as well – after the first presidential debate, the vice presidential debate, and the election itself.

2. A new book on populist demagogues – and what comes next

Professor William Howell’s 2020 book, Presidents, Populism, and the Crisis of Democracy – written with Stanford Professor Terry M. Moe – asks the most important question: Has American democracy’s long, ambitious run come to an end? They think it’s possible, with ineffective government and populist impulses leading the United States’ experiment down a terrible path.

3. The power of women in office

Women are underrepresented in political office, yet female candidates for Congress are more likely to win – and make more effective legislators. Professors Scott Ashworth, Christopher Berry, and Ethan Bueno de Mesquita ponder the role of gender discrimination in political life – and the women who have overcome it.

4. Russia in the shadows

After Russian interference in the 2016 election influenced voters and disrupted our political discourse, questions abounded about what Russia was up to in 2020. Harris Public Policy sat down with Professor Konstantin Sonin to learn more about Russia’s motives.

5. Why we believe in scandals – or don’t

After four years of nonstop scandal, Americans started to ask why certain scandals had an impact – destroying careers and changing the national narrative – while others seemed to have little influence in the media or national imagination. Professor William Howell and Associate Professor Wioletta Dziuda put forth the first formal theory of scandal revelation to figure out what sticks and why.

6. Joe Biden’s going to be the president. Now what?

Despite President Trump’s protestations to the contrary, he lost the election, and Joe Biden is set to take the office of the president on January 20, 2021. A distinguished Harris panel explored the age-old question: “where do we go from here?”

7. A proposal to vote – or else

Professor Anthony Fowler found that other countries have compulsory voting laws – which have an impact and make government more representative of the people. Could that happen in the United States?

8. How divisive can primaries get?

As the Democratic Party’s primary process rolled on, winnowing the number of candidates down from a historically large number down to one, Democrats worried that a divisive primary could hurt their chances against President Trump – who faced no serious primary challenge – in the general election. Research from Assistant Professor Alexander Fouirnaies suggests they were right to worry.

9. Keeping the election secure

The Cyber Policy Initiative at Harris worked behind the scenes with election officials across the country to make sure the election was secure. The top cybersecurity official in the United States said the 2020 election was the “most secure in American history.” (Trump fired him for saying so, you may remember.)

10. Remembering RBG

Just weeks before the election, the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg – who came to Harris in 2019 to accept the Dean’s Award – rocked the political world and broke our hearts. Yet, we turned to her example, studied her words, and remained inspired by a life well lived.