If there’s one truth about America, it’s that we love sequels. The entertainment industry knows this well and now that love for sequels has extended to the realm of politics. On November 5, 2024, Donald Trump won the Presidential election for the second time. Since then, people have gone to social media to express their frustrations and joy with the result. This is unsurprising given the divisiveness Americans experienced throughout the election process. If you open any social media app, your impression on American politics is not to dissimilar from Republic and the Confederation in Star Wars (minus all the cool sci-fi shit). Roughly half of people support one party and the other half support the other. However, what this election proved is that is not how American politics looks. Instead, the truth is much more unsettling.
America is home to roughly 262 million adult voters. 139 million voted in this election, the “majority” of which voted for Trump. That’s a “majority” of 72 million people. Now compare that to the roughly 123 million people that didn’t cast a ballot and ask yourself; which one is the real majority?
Here in lies the crucial point I have been pondering. Voter turnout has always hovered around 50% over nearly a century, with 2020 being one of the highest voter turnouts since the 1960s. At least to me, this data point suggests an inherent problem within America’s two-party system. It fails to engage the whole. Of course it is unlikely that any system will result in a hundred percent voter participation. However, half the of country opting to remain voiceless I believe says a lot about our belief in the system as a whole.
American politics wasn’t always structured in this way. In the early years of the Republic, there were a lot of debates over the Constitution and the nation’s governance. Initially, political leaders like George Washington were wary of organized political parties, viewing them as divisive. Yeah, no shit. Despite President Washington’s and others’ concerns, it was decided that it was in the countries best interest to form factions to simplify the political process, eventually leading to the system we have today. Over time, the two-party system became entrenched as it facilitated political organization, simplified choices for voters, and provided stability by balancing power between opposing views.
Although I disagree with the two-party system we have today, I want to be clear, I still vote despite thinking the system is broken. Sure I disagree with a lot of what makes up the American political structure. But why would I let that stop me from getting my voice out there. It’s very unlikely things will ever change but that’s not enough of a good reason to not try and fix it. However, I think my beliefs are more in line with the real majority, the people who don’t vote because they see it as a pointless act. In the current political landscape, they actually have the sanest perspective.
Among the flaws of a two-party system, perhaps none are bigger than it’s oversimplification. Our country finds itself in the midst of numerous complex problems. And how do we address it? With a this or that approach. By simplifying problem into two contrary perspectives, what happens is what you see every day on the news and your timeline. People stop learning more about the issues and instead entrench themselves in one of the two ideologies presented to them. Read that again.
We’re not learning more about our problems and collaborating with one another to find several viable solutions. Instead, we focus our efforts on defending the narrative set forth by one side while we call the other side stupid for doing the same thing. What’s worse is that the powers that be know this. Let’s be real, politics should be boring. It should be a bunch of smart people gathered together to research solutions to the problem facing our society and communicating that information honestly to the people impacted by these problems. Instead what we have is politicians making decision about women’s reproductive rights, lobbyist having more sway than the general public, and very important concerns not even making a footnote in the campaign, let alone the ballot.
There’s a reason nearly half the country isn’t voting. They don’t feel it matters and they have a point. Politicians are out for themselves, the news conflates stories and lies for the sake of viewership, and our country prioritizes profits over people. These are the symptoms of the two-party system, a system that seeks to make people uninformed and angry so the powers that be can profit off of their outrage in the shadows.
So what can we do about it? I don’t know. Genuinely, I have no clue. We are at the point where our choices are this or that and neither are worth a damn. Maybe therein lies the beginning of fixing this problem. Recognizing there is one and realizing the only path forward is the realize there is only one majority party. The American people. And right now it’s us versus them. Those that selfishly seek to keep things as they are, to keep people divided, in an effort to profit off of misinformation and outrage. Make no mistake, this is their American dream we’re living in, not ours.
