Election Aftermath: What’s in Store for the Nation Moving Forward?

The 2024 election has reshaped the political landscape of the United States, with consequential wins and losses across both the presidential and congressional races. The results reflect an electorate deeply divided yet increasingly focused on issues of policy and leadership that resonate with the individual and not the overall community. Now, as the nation turns its attention to the next steps, there are both challenges and opportunities awaiting leaders from both major parties.

How Trump Won:

In a surprising and decisive outcome, Donald Trump has reclaimed the presidency, making history as the second former president to return to the White House for two non-consecutive terms. His victory reflects both the loyalty of his base and his campaign’s strategic appeal to issues like immigration, economic growth, and national security. Despite inflation numbers dropping and the economy in a decent state, voters focused on their situation with many feeling that they were better off four years ago. Trump’s return to office indicates a continuation, and likely an expansion, of his first-term agenda, promising to follow through on policies that resonate strongly with his supporters. One factor contributing to Trump’s win was the strength of his “America First” messaging. His pledged commitment to economic growth through deregulation and tax cuts, along with a tougher stance on immigration, resonated with many voters, particularly in rural regions. Trump’s victory also signals a shift in how candidates are mobilizing support—not just through policy promises but through a style of politics that prioritizes assertive rhetoric and firm stances on divisive issues. Trump performed strongly with young men and won the Hispanic vote, a category that President Biden won convincingly in 2020. He also became the first Republican president since 2004 to win the popular vote when George W. Bush did so. 

Harris’s Struggle to Separate:

Kamala Harris sought to rejuvenate the Democratic Patry and coming into election night, many Democrats held cautious optimism that she would be able to pull through. That never came to fruition as she lost all three of the “blue wall” states, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin, while also conceding North Carolina and Georgia to the former president. Harris was unable to distance herself from the Biden administration and many Americans felt that the handling of the economy and immigration could have been better during President Biden’s term. She heavily relied on high voter turn-out in urban cities such as Philadephia, Detroit, Atlanta, and Milwaukee but was unable to make up ground on Donald Trump’s gains in rural areas across many states. The country will continue to wait for its first female president with both Hillary Clinton and now Kamala Harris falling to Trump. Harris conceded the election and stated that a peaceful transfer of power would occur, although she stated that her fight and commitment to the people wouldn’t stop.

What Comes Next?

The last time Donald Trump was in office, much resistance came from the Democratic Party along with some Republicans. This time around he’s sure to make it much more difficult for people to do so. He’s already surrounded himself with influential people such as his vice president JD Vance, tech billionaire Elon Musk, and conspiracy theorist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Due to this the relative stability across our country for the last four years will likely disappear with the status of the two major wars now in major jeopardy. Some have even gone as far as to question whether the United States will remain a part of NATO as tensions will only begin to rise.

The Judicial System:

Trump will also have the opportunity to significantly impact the judicial system here within the states. With the Senate already shifting to the Republicans, he can nominate more federal judges and possibly even Supreme Court justices. His justice department has already stated that Jack Smith, the special counsel who has led the federal investigations and prosecutions against Donald Trump for the past two years, will be fired and the attorney general he puts in place will drop the charges that are currently against him. Trump is scheduled to appear in a New York courtroom on November 26 to receive a sentence for his conviction earlier this year on 34 counts of faking business records to hide hush money payments to adult film star Stormy Daniels but now being the president-elect many are skeptical if this will even occur. Trump’s criminal case in Georgia mostly depends on whether Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, a Democrat, is disqualified from prosecuting the case after her prior romantic relationship with a fellow prosecutor. These charges stem from Trump’s attempts to overturn the 2020 presidential election results and a decision on Willis isn’t expected until 2025. All of the civil suits against the former president may continue to play out although their significance is certainly diminished with him being back in power. 

The Economy:

One of Trump’s key points is about bringing the economy back to flourishing levels and this means tax cuts across the board. This would lead to an increase in an already large deficit which would cause more problems for the economy down the road. He’s discussed a series of targeted tax breaks, including eliminating federal taxes on tips, Social Security benefits, and overtime tips. He’s also promised to end taxes on tips, push for a tax credit for family caregivers, and temporarily cap credit card interest rates. On top of all this, he also wants an across-the-board tariff of either 10% or 20% on every import coming into the US, as well as a tariff of more than 60% on all Chinese imports. Trump claims that tariffs will boost American manufacturing, create jobs, and bring in billions of dollars to help pay for other policy initiatives, but it’s unlikely the revenue generated from new tariffs would fully cover his spending proposals. This would also likely raise prices for American consumers. Trump, for years, has inaccurately claimed that foreign countries pay the tariffs. They are paid by importers based in the US. He has other goals such as bringing the cost of housing and health care down but hasn’t given a definitive plan as to how he plans to do so.

Immigration:

Mass deportations of immigrants here are expected to occur with Trump willing to utilize the military and National Guard to enforce this. He’s repeatedly emphasized that this would be the largest deportation effort in American history and went on to add that there’s no set price tag dedicated towards these efforts. There isn’t a clear number of how many undocumented immigrants there are in the United States but a mass deportation effort would be a huge logistical and financial challenge. Throughout his campaign Trump cited multiple examples of undocumented immigrants accused of committing crimes, going as far as to claim that Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio were eating pets. Despite his stance on immigration and a racist joke made by a comedian insulting Puerto Ricans, he performed extremely well with Latino voters seeing record gains all across the country. 

Abortion Rights:

Trump’s victory could make acess to abortion more vulnerable and uncertain across the country. He’s never fully answered the question of whether he’d support a national abortion ban but has recently commented that he wants to leave the issue up to the states. However, Trump and other members of his party have the opportunity to further restrict abortion on the federal level that wouldn’t require legislation to be passed by Congress. Abortion access has already been a shaky issue ever since the Supreme Court overturned Roe V. Wade two years ago. There’s not much public support for Congress to enforce a national ban but if Trump does take action the use of medication abortion could be limited. Many of the policies and rules put into place by President Biden will be replaced as well. This may be in the form of a version of the 1873 Comstock Act which makes it a federal crime to send or receive drugs and other materials for abortions through the mail. This would in turn block the shipment of and distribution of abortion pills and medical equipment used during abortion procedures. Another possibility is a domestic gag rule that he previously implemented which prevented providers part of the Title X family program from referring patients for abortion care or providing information on it. 

What we know about Project 2025:

Project 2025 is a detailed agenda devised by conservative think tanks like the Heritage Foundation. This project offers a framework for restructuring federal institutions and consolidating executive power to execute conservative goals more effectively. It outlines a series of measures to reform the federal bureaucracy, scaling back what supporters of the plan see as unnecessary regulatory layers that hinder economic and political efficiency. Project 2025’s priorities range from deregulating energy and environmental policies to altering the structure of federal agencies to allow for quicker, top-down implementation of policies. Many of these proposals, if enacted, would reshape how Americans interact with federal institutions in areas like education, healthcare, and energy, potentially leading to widespread policy shifts that will impact everything from public school curricula to environmental standards. For supporters, these changes are a way to reduce what they see as federal overreach and infuse the country with Christian beliefs and biblical teachings. Donald Trump has attempted to downplay his involvement with Project 2025 in the past, however, many of their policies align with his vision for the country moving forward.  Opponents worry that this could lead to an erosion of checks and balances, concentrating too much power within the executive branch while taking us backward in time.