US elections: Trump, Biden and the great American divide

While Democrat Joe Biden has maintained his overall advantage over President Donald Trump in recent WSJ/NBC polls, the race in battleground states is narrowing.

Many Americans are voting as though their lives depend on it. The election has become a referendum on the “soul of America” and voting isn’t just a political preference but a reflection of one’s own morality. America’s soul is at stake according to both Republicans and Democrats, and only their candidate can save the future of democracy.

While Democrat Joe Biden has maintained his overall advantage over President Donald Trump in recent WSJ/NBC polls, the race in battleground states is narrowing. The nation is on edge as the gap in swing states has dropped from 10 per cent to just 6 per cent which is within the margin of error.

Elections in the United States have always been polarising but according to the journal Science, 2020 is seeing new levels of polarisation that has cast the other side as alien, unlikable, and morally inferior. Many will openly admit that the election campaign has been toxic, but few will look at their own parties’ role in escalating the divisiveness we are seeing.

“I think there is simultaneous hope that this is coming to an end, that we will be free from this craziness, but there is also an overwhelming sense of dread. I just don’t see a reality where there isn’t unrest in our country,.” says Tamar, a Kentucky voter who didn’t identify as Republican or Democrat.

“Seeing cities in this country board up their businesses after everything we have been through feels so hopeless. This isn’t the country I know and I don’t see an option where this division doesn’t continue to grow,” she adds.

Democrats will say that America is in need of healing, while Republicans say America needs to be freed from the grip of anarchists and extremists. We are seeing families divided and friends deleted as the 2020 election shapes up to be a personality contest driven by identity politics.

Several New York Democrats who spoke to Khaleej Times expressed “utter devastation” if Trump is re-elected.

Meanwhile, Avi Kaner, a Connecticut Republican voter and owner of supermarket chain Morton Williams says he is feeling more optimistic than others. While his family vote is split in half, unlike many other families, political discussion are welcome and even encouraged around the table.

Kaner who’s grocery stores were badly looted several months back, is preparing for possible civil unrest and weighing security options for election night- deciding between boarding up his 18eighteen sStores or hiring armed security. He expects to see violence if the election results are close, or if neither side concedes.

— Michal Michelle Divon is a journalist based in New York City

• Americas