As I write this column a week away from the big election for our next president, all I know is that things will change in the year 2025.
If you believed the polls you knew that it was likely going to be a close race between Republican Donald Trump and Democrat Kamala Harris.
These candidates could not be more different. Trump is conservative and has already served one term as president, only to be upended for reelection by Joe Biden in 2020. Harris is extremely liberal and has served as vice president under Biden for the past four years.
The election cycle seems like it has lasted forever. There was mudslinging by both parties and each candidate.
Regardless of the winner, there will be changes in the way we are governed.
The big issues are the economy, the border/illegal immigration, abortion and our national security.
We expected that certain states would be a cinch for Trump and others for Harris. But then there were several toss-up states that decided the election. I have no way of predicting who will win. In fact, with mail-in and early voting, we may not know who won the election for a few days after the General Election on Tuesday, Nov. 5.
But one thing I do know: we will finally be free of all of the political commercials on television – both national candidates as well as state candidates.
This election is also important for the legislative branch of our government, with several U.S. Senate seats to be elected that will control the Senate and several congressional seats up for grabs. The party that controls those branches of our government has a distinct advantage when it comes to passing bills.
They have to work with the sitting president. If one party controls the White House and the other the legislative seats, things can get cloudy. If two different parties control the Senate and Congress at the same time, it also makes a huge difference. However, if one party, for example, the Republicans, controls both branches and the presidential candidate is from the same party, then we would see extreme changes in laws and bills one way or the other.
I do not think I have ever seen our country so divided. It seems the United States is so split on issues.
Most elections are affected to some degree by the actual economic index, such as inflation. However, the long-term political division in the United States has deepened because so many regions are so divided.
In this day of social media, it seems to be worse than ever. People have argued and bickered online about the two candidates and some of the major issues that vary from state to state.
Depending on what television news channel you watch – you will likely see bias for one candidate and party toward the other. That confused many who were undecided going into the last week of the election cycle. Most had their minds made up long before the early and absentee voting even started.
Personally I think the philosophies of the two parties have changed over the years. The Democratic Party is not the same as when Franklin Roosevelt or Harry Truman were elected. Likewise, the Republican Party is not the same as when Dwight Eisenhower or even George W. Bush served as our Commander in Chief.
And we can forget about a third-party candidate. None has ever been taken seriously or had a legitimate chance of winning a national election.
I hope and literally pray every day that our country will come together. This is not only for the well-being of our citizens but also for the well-being of those who win the election, which has a huge impact on the world. The war in the Middle East, the turmoil in Eastern Europe (Ukraine and Russia) and the threat of terrorists are real and simply chilling.
Regardless of what happens, the day after the election and in the days that follow, let’s pray that we will be OK as a society and country. But there is no doubt things will change for all of us.
Until next time.
(Kyle Lovern is a longtime journalist in the Tug Valley. He is now a retired freelance writer and columnist for the Mountain Citizen.)
Editor’s note: Views and opinions expressed in the Op-Ed section of the newspaper are those of the individual authors and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of the newspaper management, staff or ownership.