Election results show how people voted and give insight into the direction of our country. They help shape everything from the economy to foreign policy and whether Americans have access to affordable healthcare and law enforcement in their communities. Oftentimes, elections are decided by thousands or even just a handful of votes. But each vote counts.
The stability of democracy relies on the public’s confidence in the legitimacy of election outcomes. Previous research has shown that voters on the losing side of an election are more prone to distrust the results, and it is harder to restore trust than to damage it. Moreover, the extent to which voters lose faith in the election system depends in part on how elite messages and electoral expectations inform their perceptions of the fairness of the process.
In addition to the presidential race, this year’s elections saw a change in leadership in both Congress and several state legislatures. Republicans gained ground in the House and gained a majority in the Senate, while Democrats lost “trifecta” control (control of both the state’s legislative chambers and the governorship) in two states.
The American Trends Panel conducted a survey from November 5 through November 7 to assess the impact of election results on attitudes and beliefs about democracy. This design tests theories of the winner effect — that is, when the winning party sees its candidate win an election, the losing party members’ trust in democratic systems and elections declines — by holding elite cues constant but testing for mass attitudinal shifts immediately following the revelation of an election result.