PLNU Navigates Post-Election Tension Through Open Dialogue 

Election night has ended, the dust of Armageddon has settled, and your candidate has not been elected as the 47th president of the United States. 

Leading up to Nov. 5, there has been a growing concern and anxiety about what the future holds and what the next president will do for our nation, according to Noah Ashe, a third-year political science major. 

73% of respondents reported being anxious about the election before Nov. 5, according to the American Psychiatric Association.

One reason for this might be the length of the election process. In comparison to the United States election process, other western style democracies like the United Kingdom and Iceland have formal elections that last five to six weeks. The U.S. has a much longer campaign process that can be as long as two years from the candidate announcing their intent to run for president to election night. 

The United States also spends large amounts of money on elections. Before election night, governmental transparency group OpenSecrets predicted the total spent on the 2024 election cycle would exceed 15 billion dollars. This is much higher than the limit for elections in the United Kingdom where the spending limit is just under 1.9 million U.S. dollars. 

Elections have been happening in America since 1788. In that time, five elections were close enough to be contested, ranging by wins of 7,368 votes to 500,000 votes. In some cases, the popular vote did not win the election.

Over the past 20 years, there have been peaceful transfers of power except for the years 2000, when the electoral college won the election after Florida was required by law to recount votes, and in 2020, when accusations of fraudulent voting and election rigging led to the Jan. 6 insurrection.  

With so much time and energy put into the election cycle, many lose sight of how they treat friends and family.

“Students should lead with care for their neighbors and their classmates,” Maria Voss, Point Loma Nazarene University professor of campaigns and elections, said.  

Voss is new to PLNU this semester in the political science department. She said that her campaigns and elections class, cover the rules of elections, how they function and what types of issues voters care about. 

Voss said that campaigns and elections in the U.S. can tear families and friendships apart. It is important that society can articulate thoughts and concerns about their opinions and practice hearing different opinions, she said. 

“Teaching this class is tough because everything now is very polarized,” she said. 

Voss said that facts seem to be politicized and the way that they are framed makes it difficult to engage in conversations. When teaching campaigns and elections, she has observed that students in the political science department tend to be more moderate and apply strategic thinking to the way they view things.

The way the media portrays the election influences the way that we speak about the current situation in the U.S. Pew Research shows that 69% of Americans said that the internet and social media have made people talk about politics without being courteous or polite. 

“We have to recognize that no matter the outcome, the people we live with and study with will also fear the outcome of the election,” Voss said.

Ashe said, “I am intrigued and nervous about where the country is headed and what we believe in, but in the end, Americans are resilient people and will overcome the election.” 

Some ways that Voss said students can be effective and encourage open dialogue is to have compassion for others and recognize they have also dealt with fear.  

“Elections help people see that politics matter and it spurs people into taking action,” Voss said.

During the post-election period PLNU is creating a “space for open dialogue,” Colby Douglas, PLNU Associated Student Body president, said.  

Partnering with Olive Branch Solutions, an ongoing partnership that began during Welcome Week where leaders were trained to navigate difficult conversations, is to create a place for students to be open in conversation. The focus will be on peace and reconciliation of thoughts and opinions, Douglas said. 

The post-election conversations will take place Nov. 11 at 5 p.m. in the Brown Chapel foyer. Olive Branch Solutions will be available to facilitate tough conversations and will equip students to have those conversations with others.