The moments that shaped America's whiplash election year
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America's whiplash election ends Tuesday when polls close nationwide following a year of political uncertainty and violence unlike any other in this country's modern history.
Why it matters: A perfect storm fueled by the unrelenting pace of historic headlines has conspired to test America and its democracy.
The big picture: An Axios analysis of Google Trends data (charted above) shows the dramatic peaks and valleys of America's attention span since January.
- At almost every moment since May, the election has found a way to demand the near-constant attention of a populace wary of former President Trump, President Biden and Vice President Harris, who are historically unpopular.
Zoom in: Trump became the first former American president convicted of felony crimes. The sentencing is scheduled for three weeks from Tuesday, putting his freedom in jeopardy if he loses tonight.
- He then survived two assassination attempts, narrowly escaping a close call at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, when a bullet grazed his ear.
- He's sold Trump Bibles, Trump sneakers and Trump NFTs.
- His extreme rhetoric has infected the election. Just in the past week, Trump has said he "shouldn't have left" the White House after losing in 2020; said he wouldn't mind if reporters were shot at; and encouraged a supporter who insulted Harris as a prostitute.
Somewhere in the middle, President Biden dropped out of the race after being pushed aside by fellow Democrats following his debate debacle — a group that included former Speaker Nancy Pelosi to George Clooney.
- His vice president replaced him on the ticket. Her folksy way of talking about coconut trees became an improbably popular meme among young Americans.
- Her campaign became associated with "Brat," the wildly popular green-hued album by pop star Charli XCX.
- She was forced to navigate the election as a quasi-incumbent, largely unable to separate herself from the Biden administration's positions while evading questions about policy promises from her 2019 Democratic primary run.
By the numbers: These five search terms generated the biggest election-adjacent spikes this year.
- Trump, which peaked after the first assassination attempt in July.
- Harris, hitting a high the day Biden withdrew.
- Biden, peaking on the same day as Harris.
- Israel, which reached a high in April during a wave of campus protests.
- Debate, which got the most interest in September when Trump and Harris faced off in Philadelphia.
Between the lines: Those top search terms are only the tip of the news iceberg.
- Elon Musk, who already maintained high levels of interest, attracted even more attention when he threw his money and voice behind Trump's campaign.
- Madison Square Garden and Puerto Rico have seen serious spikes since a comedian called the island "garbage" at Trump's Manhattan rally last month.
What's next: There are no signs this unprecedented and unhinged election cycle will stop here. Almost anything can happen in the 76 days between today and the inauguration.
