Donald Trump has been reelected, winning both the popular vote and every swing state, with the Republicans likely gaining control of both houses of Congress. But despite what the media says, this is not some mandate from the population. Instead, the election results show this was a rejection of the Democrats and the status quo, and an expression of deep dissatisfaction with both parties.
In 2020, Biden got over 81 million votes. But Harris got millions of less votes (some votes are still being counted). Instead of gaining supporters, Trump got about the same number of votes as last time. And this time about 35% of eligible voters didn’t vote, so about 85 million people didn’t vote for president — more than either candidate got — suggesting that neither candidate represents their interests.
This is not surprising. Biden promised to be the most pro-worker president in history, but the lives of most working-class people have not improved. Under Biden, the working class saw its purchasing power eroded with rampant inflation. Compared to 2019, housing costs are up 54%, energy costs 61%, food about 25%, health insurance about 22%. These prices have forced working-class people to go deeper into debt just to survive. And the small support that people did get during the pandemic, for things like food, child care and eviction protection — all of that was cut during Biden’s term, just as the cost of living was skyrocketing. Even the jobs Biden bragged about bringing back, most of them were part-time and low-wage. And then Harris ran a campaign telling people that everything was great, while their lives and communities were in crisis.
So, it should be no surprise that in every demographic of working-class voters, the Democrats lost votes — among white workers, Black workers, Latino workers. The only group the Democrats gained votes in are among households with incomes above $200,000 per year.
Meanwhile, in major cities across the U.S., homelessness is increasing; there are frequent crimes of poverty; deaths from drug overdose are at record levels; rent is unaffordable; schools and hospitals are underfunded and understaffed; police continue to brutalize people in poor neighborhoods. And it is often Democratic mayors and governors that oversee these cities and states, and who have done nothing to address the crisis many workers face.
Add to that the enormous promises that Biden made when he ran in 2020: to protect the environment, defend immigrants, cancel student debt, lower health care costs — he delivered on none of these. Under Biden, the U.S. is producing more barrels of crude oil per day than any country in the world. Instead of protecting immigrants, the Biden administration boasts about its record number of arrests at the border. Students are still finishing college averaging over $37,000 in debt. But the Democrats didn’t hesitate to give over $20 billion to support Israel’s genocide of Palestinians, and a wider war in the Middle East.
Of course, Trump and the Republicans don’t offer any solutions to these problems, either. But Trump was able to acknowledge some of the hardships that workers face. He would then, of course, try to redirect all of that dissatisfaction into blaming undocumented workers, or LGBTQ people, or any other scapegoat he could think of.
Trump voters didn’t have to agree with everything he said, or believe he would carry out all of his threats. In some states that Trump won, voters passed laws to protect reproductive rights, or to increase the minimum wage and provide paid sick leave. Some workers felt heard by Trump, and were able to vote for him, hoping he will do something to fix their situation.
But he won’t. Trump will continue to serve the very wealthy and their corporations. He will intensify the attacks on undocumented workers, further restrict the rights of LGBTQ people, accelerate the destruction of the environment, and keep going after reproductive health care. He will continue down a path of increased militarization and war, and will cut social services even further. The Democrats and the Republicans both defend the same system, but Trump does so with the mask ripped off, wearing his attacks on the population like a badge of honor.
But the solution is not to lose hope, nor is it to wait for the next election to pick someone with more false promises. There is no political party that is coming to save us. But we can’t fight back alone. In order to stand up to the crisis we already face and the many more attacks that are coming, we must rely on ourselves. We don’t have to let these dishonest politicians speak for us — we can speak for ourselves.
We know more attacks are coming. Now is the time we can begin to come together in our workplaces, neighborhoods, and schools, and discuss how only if we are united together can we confront the problems we face. After all, we do all the work to make their society run, and collectively we have an enormous power both to defend our interests, and to transform the whole society.
