The World and Everything in It: November 6, 2024

PREROLL: On Tuesday, millions of Americans showed up at their local polling station. They pulled a lever, filled in a dot, or chose on a computer kiosk. I’m Emma Perley. Stay with us for this special election edition of The World and Everything in It.

LINDSAY MAST, HOST: Good morning!

The election’s behind us. And as you heard … voters turned out in record numbers.

WORLD sent reporters to swing state polling places to get a first-draft of history:

REPORTER: How did you vote in the presidential election this year? 

VOTER: As quickly as I could.

NICK EICHER, HOST: Washington Wednesday is ahead.

Also today, a special WORLD Opinions Roundtable. We’ll hit some of the highlights and lowlights of Election ’24.

And we’ll end once again with encouraging Scriptures and more of your prayers for our newly elected officials—even if we don’t know who all of them are.

And I’m Nick Eicher. Good morning!

MAST: Now news with Kent Covington.

TRUMP: Thank you very much, wow! 

KENT COVINGTON, NEWS ANCHOR: Trump victory » Former President Donald Trump is now once again President Elect Donald Trump. He declared victory early this morning shortly after Fox News called the election for the 45th and soon to be 47th president.

TRUMP: We overcame obstacles that nobody thought possible, and it is now clear that we've achieved the most incredible political thing. Look what happened. Is this crazy? 

He had the teleprompters removed from the stage before he walked out, winging his victory speech.

Trump vowed to get to work quickly and to help the country heal.

He was joined on stage by Vice President Elect JD Vance:

VANCE:  I think that we just witnessed the greatest political comeback in the history of the United States of America! 

Vice President Kamala Harris did not immediately concede. In fact, a crowd gathered at her campaign headquarters last night did not see the vice president. Instead, hearing only a brief statement from campaign chairman, Cedric Richmond:

RICHMOND: We still have votes to count. We still have states that have not been called yet. We will continue overnight. 

Trump won the critical swing states of Georgia, South Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. And as of early this morning, he also appeared likely to win Michigan, Arizona, and Nevada. That would be a clean sweep of all the major battleground states.

He also appears likely to win the popular vote. That would make him the first Republican presidential candidate in 20 years to do that.

GOP claims Senate, House undecided » And when Trump moves back into the White House in January, he’ll have a friendly Senate to work with. Republicans won control of the upper chamber last night, including a hotly contested race in Ohio.

Brandon Moreno addressed supporters after unseating incumbent Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown.

MORENO:  Today starts a new wave. You know, we talked about wanting a red wave. I think what we have tonight is a red, white, and blue wave.

And as of 3 a.m. Eastern Time this morning, Republican Senate candidates were ahead in the vote counts in Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Nevada, and Montana.

After this election, Republicans could control as many as 56 of the 100 seats in the U.S. Senate.

That majority will include Sen. Ted Cruz, who won reelection in Texas, soundly defeating Democratic challenger Colin Allred in the most expensive Senate race in history.

CRUZ:  I want to thank every Texan across our great state who has stood with us in this fight, who worked, and who fought for Texas.

Republicans are defending a narrow majority in the House. Donald Trump expressed confidence that the GOP will keep control of the chamber.

But with plenty of votes left to count in so many different races, it could be several days — perhaps even more than a week — before the battle for the House is officially decided.

Gubernatorial races » Republicans also had a big night in gubernatorial races, winning seven races, including in New Hampshire where former Sen. Kelly Ayotte is now governor-elect.

AYOTTE: Tonight’s victory is a victory for New Hampshire, but it’s also a victory for an even brighter future for the greatest state in the nation.

She defeated Democrat challenger Joyce Craig.

Democrats successfully defended three governorships last night.

Florida rejects Abortion, pot ballot initiatives » And last night also delivered a massive victory for pro-life advocates in Florida.

Voters rejected a ballot initiative that would have enshrined abortion rights in the state constitution and another ballot measure that would have legalized recreational marijuana.

Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis campaigned hard against both measures …

DESANTIS:  The people that are pursuing this, they're not spending 120 million dollars, you know, just for, for, for kicks. They're doing it because they're gonna make a lot of money off this.

That means a law protecting unborn children after six weeks gestation will remain in place.

An abortion ballot measure also failed in South Dakota.

But pro-abortion activists succeeded with abortion ballot measures in several other states, including Missouri.

Missouri is positioned to be the first state where a vote will undo a ban that's already in place. Currently, unborn children are protected at all stages of pregnancy with an exception only when a medical emergency puts a mother’s life at risk. 

SOUND: [Israel protest]

Netanyahu fires defense minister » Protests have erupted in Israel …

SOUND: [Israel protest]

After Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday fired his defense minister, Yoav Gallant in a surprise announcement. The prime minister said he’s lost faith in Gallant.

NETANYAHU: [Speaking in Hebrew]

Netanyahu and Gallant have repeatedly been at odds over the war in Gaza. But Netanyahu had avoided firing his rival before taking the step as the world’s attention was focused on the U.S. presidential election.

Foreign Minister Israel Katz will step into the role.

I'm Kent Covington.

Straight ahead: our reporters spent yesterday at a handful of battleground state polling stations. We’ll hear from voters. Plus, a WORLD Opinions roundtable—considering the lessons learned during the 2024 election.

This is The World and Everything in It.

LINDSAY MAST, HOST: It’s Wednesday, the 6th of November. Glad to have you along for today’s edition of The World and Everything in It. Good morning, I’m Lindsay Mast.

NICK EICHER, HOST: And I’m Nick Eicher. Time now for Washington Wednesday … and here is Carolina Lumetta.

CAROLINA LUMETTA: Yesterday at the polls, voters brought their opinions on the state of the nation … and WORLD’s reporters were there to listen.

LEAH SAVAS: How did you vote in the presidential election this year?

ROB ARTECKI: As quickly as I could.

Voters in battleground states sounded off on the concerns that drove them to the polls.

MIKE LOWRY: border security, the economy, and national defense…

RACHEL POLING: Mostly women's rights, immigrant rights.

BRIAN CAPPIELLO: Oh economy for sure I mean my wife asks me the same question every time she goes grocery shopping she says guess how much groceries were today.

JERRY RAMIREZ: I like her economic plan, that $6,000 child tax credit.

ROBIN WATKINS: The border, getting control over the spending.

MARY BAUGH: The economy and the wars that's going on and the freedom to choose.

Exit polls from national media found that the majority of those who voted echoed campaign messaging. Those for Vice President Kamala Harris cited the “state of democracy” as their top issue. Most of former President Donald Trump’s voters said the economy was their foremost concern…including Stephanie Burkhart in Fulton County, Georgia.

STEPHANIE BURKHART: I have six kids, some of them are now adults, and the next four years are a big part of their lives. So I felt like this was very important.

Georgia voters were divided deeply on partisan lines in rural and urban areas. For many Harris voters, specific policies did not matter so much as a general sense that Trump was a threat and Harris would preserve democracy. Here’s Adam Becker, a voter from Fulton County, Georgia.

ADAM BECKER: I really voted for her because I felt like I had no other choice. I don't dislike her. I can't point to too many things specifically that I think are strong on her side. But I dislike and very much disapprove of so many of Donald Trump's philosophies and what he communicates.

Elsewhere in Fulton County, Mahan Bozinginia said Trump is bad for national politics.

MAHAN BOZINGINIA: I am tired of the anger and division that Trump and the MAGA group are bringing on the country and I don't always agree with Kamala Harris and her policies, but I'm ready to move on from the crazy. I'm just done. I'm tired. 

But Georgia voters in rural areas of the same county said they don’t trust Harris to run the country’s checkbook.

CAMERON DENMAN: Economically I don't feel like we're doing as good as we could have so I definitely want to see some changes on that front. I mean, me being at 27, trying to buy a house, start a family, all that kind of stuff, feels almost near impossible right now.

Republicans also said they want Trump back in the Oval Office to manage U.S. involvement in foreign wars.

In Michigan…

SAVAS: Who did you vote for, for president this year?

RANDY TATE: Donald J. Trump. Why? Because I'm fresh out of 30,000 SPF sunscreen for the nuclear war that would come if we don't elect him.

Randy Tate is an unaffiliated voter in Kent County…near Grand Rapids.

TATE: I've been watching the current administration, which is difficult to explain who's actually in charge. I would imagine it's the managerial class that's running things and they have done a very poor job and therefore the world does seem like it's on fire.

Voters also said abortion weighed heavily on their minds this year, but that sent support to both Harris and Trump. The former president has said he would not sign a national pro-life law … and Michigan voter Leidy Fournier found that worth supporting.

LEIDY FOURNIER: I feel like his position has shifted and has become a little bit more protective of women's right to an abortion, especially if her life is at stake. So I feel like he was a good compromise of a good in -between place for this election.

Meanwhile, over in Pennsylvania, Harris voter Katlyn Johnson saw the issue differently.

KATLYN JOHNSON: I like having my healthcare not being tampered with. I'm a firm believer in abortion rights and women's rights.

Across the country, voters were mixed on how much trust they put in the final results being accurate results.

Here’s what voters from both parties in Georgia and Pennsylvania told us.

ROBIN WATKINS: I've seen a couple things prior to the election that, you know, I kind of questioned it.

AARON ANDERSON: I do trust the results. - I did not trust the results previously.

LADINA: Hopefully everything goes smoothly. I hope we don't have to wait days before we find out.

MELISSA HUGHES: I'm trying to be confident. Last election made me a little nervous... I'm hoping we can get back to what we used to. Cut and dry. Cut and dry.

And for much of the country, the election was cut and dry…particularly in Georgia, where almost 95 percent of the vote was counted before the race was called early Wednesday morning. In the northwest corner of Pennsylvania, Erie County was of top interest to both campaigns because of how narrowly voters there split between Republicans and Democrats. The county also mirrored presidential wins in 2016 and 2020. Erie County GOP chairman Tom Eddy says even his divided community already favored the former president:

TOM EDDY: I think if he gets elected, I think it's going to be because they're fed up with the last four years and the policies that have been generated over the last four years. That's my gut feeling.

That’s it for Washington Wednesday. Reporting for WORLD, I’m Carolina Lumetta.

NICK EICHER, HOST: Today is Wednesday, November 6th.

Thank you for turning to WORLD Radio to help start your day.

Good morning. I’m Nick Eicher.

LINDSAY MAST, HOST: And I’m Lindsay Mast.

Up next, making sense of the 2024 election. Here now to talk about it are three experts who write for WORLD Opinions: former National Security Council staff member Will Inboden, political scientist Hunter Baker, and Wisconsin-based attorney Daniel Suhr.

EICHER: Gentlemen, thanks for joining us!

INBODEN: Great to be here.

MAST: So what moments stand out to you from election 2024? Hunter, why don't you kick us off with that?

BAKER: I think the thing that you have to look at is this switch from Biden to Harris, right? That has to be the biggest thing that happened in this election, followed by the Trump assassination attempt. That short period of days has got to be one of the most interesting, exciting, strange sort of series of events that has happened in recent American political history.

EICHER: Daniel, I'm curious what you think about the lawfare aspect of it. It didn't happen during the campaign so much, but it was certainly in the lead up to it.

SUHR: Absolutely. We have seen a whole new level of using the criminal justice system, right? We've often seen complaints about election law, campaign finance, recounts, there's always been litigation around elections. But we've never seen this use of the criminal justice system, the FBI breaking into the home of a former president to serve a search warrant, right? A former president being charged in multiple different courts on multiple different counts. It's a whole new level. And I think a lot of Americans identified with President Trump, felt that he was being persecuted, but more deeply that there were fundamental values that we hold as a country that we don't use the legal system to prosecute and punish our political opponents and that those principles were really being undermined by the various prosecutions we saw this year.

EICHER: So let me ask Will Inboden, are you surprised given that there is a hot war going on with Israel, there is certainly a lot happening between Iran and Israel, that foreign policy didn't seem to have that big of a, play that much of a role in the campaign?

INBODEN: Yeah, it's a good point, Nick. There's a real disconnect between conditions in the world, which is a very, very dangerous place right now, and the fact that the campaign has largely been fought on and contested on domestic issues. And I understand that in some sense, but still it bears remembering that, you know, whoever wins here will be our new commander-in-chief and will inherit obviously a hot war with Israel fighting for its life against, you know, threats from on multiple fronts, most of them prompted by Iran.

Of course, you have the ongoing war in Ukraine with Russia's invasion there. You have China continuing to threaten Taiwan, and you have North Korea threatening to do another ICBM test here. And you have the potential resurgence of ISIS and Al-Qaeda. And so, you know, the world is very unstable and dangerous right now in need of a strong America. And those issues just have not been really at the forefront in the presidential race or many of the congressional races either.

MAST: So let's talk policy a bit. What do you make of the candidates and how they've shifted in their positions? Trump on abortion, for example, Harris on economics…

BAKER: Well, I would say that Harris has tried to moderate. She has tried to look more interested in the immigration question. Now, when it comes to economics, I'm not sure how much moderating actually occurred. I mean, I could go back to fairly recent history and you could still find one of her economic advisors on CNBC defending a wealth tax, defending an unrealized capital gains tax. That is pretty radical stuff. So I think that they felt like they could do that, but she did have to moderate on the border.

EICHER: Speaking of moderation, this is for Daniel Sur, isn't it interesting that Donald Trump and JD Vance both were essentially what we would call pro-choice Republicans, were they not?

SUHR: Pro-life voters across America are justly disappointed in the lack of leadership from the Trump campaign this time around, especially because he was so good last time around. I think a lot of us look back to the 2016 debate he had with Hillary Clinton when he described the abortion procedure in a way that really put in very sharp contrast exactly what we were fighting about. He appointed great justices. His great justices delivered Dobbs. There was such an incredible record here. And it felt like that just got tossed overboard. We literally tossed the baby out with the bathwater in order to avoid a political problem.

And what we've seen in Florida, for instance, is that it doesn't have to be a political problem. That there are ways to talk about abortion that work with voters. At the end of the day though, the solace I take, Nick, is that President Trump is still going to appoint great judges. He's still going to appoint pro-life people in important policy positions at the Department of Justice, at Health and Human Services, right? We're not going to see prosecutions of people engaged in peaceful sidewalk counseling like we have the past few years. So, I do think there will be a shift in policy in the pro-life direction, but ultimately this is going to be a fight that continues to be fought state by state and not at the federal level.

BAKER: I just wanna add, I think that it's very early innings on abortion. The Dobbs decision has clearly changed everything. I think a lot of pro-lifers had the idea that when you win that case, that all of a sudden America becomes a pro-life country. Instead, what it did was to reveal, that when abortion becomes true retail politics with active campaigns that are going to affect current public policy, that that changes the way voters receive it. And so that's part of why it's so important that Florida was able to send a pro-life message. This is the first really encouraging thing to come along since Dobbs opened things up.

EICHER: Well, this is where I'd like to bring Will Inboden in, having recently become a Floridian. Will, you watched that whole thing unfold. I know that Florida was a real prize for the pro-abortion side, and it looked like it had a lot of momentum, but something happened, something changed, and we found out early last night that the pro-life side prevailed.

INBODEN: Yes, and this was really encouraging because the pro-abortionists went all in here on Florida. They massively outspent the pro-life side, did some horribly distorted propaganda pushing Amendment 4, which is a very radically pro-abortion amendment, was going to essentially eviscerate not just any of the existing restrictions, but parental notification, fetal viability tests, and so forth. And so the fact that it went down pretty decisively is really encouraging. All credit, well, not all credit, but certainly significant credit to Governor DeSantis, who was a very courageous and principled leader on this and shows that the pro-life side can win when we have a political leader who will make the case, as well as on the substance. I think enough Florida voters saw the pro-abortion side for the extreme position they were trying to take. That said, we also have the 60 % threshold here, and it did get 57 % for what we would call the pro-abortion side.

You know that that really troubles me like I wish it would have been a clear majority against. But again considering the recent national trends of most other states that have had these referenda the pro abortion side has won, Florida was a real watershed. And I hope it will, you know, indicate a change in momentum for pro-lifers. You know we won with Dobbs, but now we need to win in the court of public opinion and we need to make the case for the American people on how sacred life is, on our obligations to protect it, and how just extreme the pro-abortion side is in the positions they're pushing.

MAST: I was out yesterday in Georgia across a number of different precincts, talked to many different voters. And the thing that stuck out to me was that among these voters who may have been voting for different candidates, but even within the ones who were voting for Harris or Trump, they had a wide variety of reasons on their main issue and why they landed on the person that they landed on. And I'm curious about what that means going forward, both for the candidates, but also for the country in that people feel very differently and are coming from multiple perspectives on where they want to see the country go. Hunter, do you want to take a stab at that?

BAKER: Yeah, I think that there were several major issues in this campaign that were motivating different people. So for example, I think that the headline issue is inflation. I think that probably there are a lot of voters who are super motivated by inflation, just simple, the impact on their pocketbook and how they react to that. And that's why you have Trump kind of putting forward that Reagan-esque question, “are you better off now than you were four years ago?”

But for other people, the revolution in human sexuality may be the top issue, particularly as it comes to biological men participating in women's sports. Or you may have a significant number of people who are aligned with Robert F. Kennedy and then kind of being tied to Trump on these questions like vaccines and national health and things of that nature. And of course the whole woke issue, right? There's a group of people who are concerned like Elon Musk that sort of this woke movement represents a major threat to free speech. And so there are lots of different kinds of ideological planets that people can be revolving around in this election.

SUHR: Lindsay, if I can add just one thought, I think there's a significant personality portion of this as well that's sort of separate from issues. The American people have no idea who Kamala Harris is. She has just burst onto the scene in 100 days. And I think there's a deep concern about whether or not she's up to the job. And conversely with President Trump, in four years, in our human nature, we often forget the bad parts and just remember the good parts. And so people look back on the first Trump administration. They don't think about January 6th. They think about the economy doing well. They think about the world being at peace. And there's a strong sense that he's competent, right? We might not agree with him on every issue. We might not like his personality and style, but we know that when he was in charge, the trains ran on time and things were okay. And there's this deep concern that there's not just not a track record, but that you know, the vice president's a lightweight in the world's most serious job. And so I would layer on top of Hunter's absolutely accurate issues profile, just a reality of who the candidates are this time around and how many swing voters can feel confident with the vice president in the top job.

INBODEN: Yeah, and Lindsay if I can chime in there and reinforce some of what Daniel was saying, and this is where this is a pretty, I'm speaking as a historian here, it's a relatively unprecedented election, and that both candidates can plausibly claim to be, “outsiders,” know, agents of change, while both of them are also plausibly incumbents, right? I mean, you know, we haven't, you know, Trump is the first time since Grover Cleveland back in the 19th century, that we had a former president who, you know, didn't get a second term and then run again. And so is he an outsider or is he incumbent? Well, a little bit of both. And then Kamala Harris has been this relative nonentity as vice president. On the one hand, she's running as an incumbent. She has been in the office for four years, even though as Daniel rightly said, no one really knows what she thinks or believes. And so she's been trying to run as this agent of hope and opportunity and change. That has meant trying to distance herself from the pretty abysmal Biden record of the last last four years. And so and I think a lot of American voters come down different, you know, differently on this question. Who's the who's the outsider? Who's the incumbent? Who's the agent of change? Who's the agent of continuity?

EICHER: All right, National Security Council staff member, Inboden, that's who you were just listening to prior to that. Daniel Sir, a Wisconsin based attorney and political scientist, Hunter Baker. Gentlemen, thank you so much for being with us this morning.

INBODEN: Thank you, great to be with you.

NICK EICHER, HOST: Today is Wednesday, November 6th. Good morning! This is The World and Everything in It from listener-supported WORLD Radio. I’m Nick Eicher.

LINDSAY MAST, HOST: And I’m Lindsay Mast. Before we go, we set aside a few minutes once again to pray for our nation and our newly elected leaders. Our thanks to the many listeners who sent in prayers and readings. Here are a few more of the many we received.

ANNA STROUD: Lord. We thank you for all you have done, and we thank you for our political leaders. We are in a time in our community where there will be transitions in political leadership, and we pray that you would touch all who are running for public or government office. We ask that their hearts are in your hands and that you, Lord, would lead them. Isaiah, 43:19 states, to not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you. He will neither fail you nor abandon you. We know leaders have to make tough decisions, but the Lord has already dealt with everything they will have to face. Lord, as our leaders transition, we ask that they have an open line of communication with you. Amen.

DANIEL HENRY: We ask for you to graciously reveal your son to both party nominees, Donald Trump and Kamala Harris, to their running mates, Tim Walz and JD Vance. I pray this for both parties, whether they lose and find themselves humbled before you, or win the election and suddenly find themselves in power, needing wisdom. Why should they continue on in unbelief to their own shame, and lead their nation or loved ones into evil? And we intercede, not only for them alone, but for all who are in high positions. Let them be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth. Most High God, we thank you for your control of the hearts of kings. Do so again, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way, and may your church not take such blessings for granted, but let your people make use of the freedom boldly proclaiming in this nation, faith in Jesus, the Christ, and repentance for the forgiveness of sins in Jesus's Name. Amen.

LINDSAY VANDER ARK: Heavenly Father, you are the creator and sustainer of all the world. We trust in you and in your promises. By your Spirit, help us to submit to the earthly authorities you have established, to honor our elected and appointed officials and to seek the good of everyone. May the leaders of this nation, from the President to local authorities, fear you and give you glory. It is in Christ's name, the one in whom we find complete redemption and restoration that I pray Amen.

DAN JOHNSON: We thank You for the privilege of living in a nation that is rooted in your word and the honor of participating with you in your work of reconciliation and redemption in a fallen world. We pray for our elected leaders, that they would bring dignity, honor, trustworthiness and righteousness to the office they hold. And we pray for our nation that the motto of  “one nation under God” would be realized in all its splendor. We offer this in the precious name of Jesus, our Savior. Amen.

ELIZABETH O'NEILL: O great and powerful God whose name is the Lord Almighty. Great are your purposes and mighty are your deeds. These words from Jeremiah's prayer encourage me to look to you alone. Lord, forgive me for misplaced hopes as I have looked at man's answers to man's problems. Encourage your people who serve us in government, give them courage and favor. Let your purposes reign and let us bow before you with submissive hearts in your name. Amen.

RYAN ROPER: Father. I pray that your people would commit our ways to you, that we would trust in you to act, and that we, as your Word tells us to, would do good and befriend faithfulness and delight ourselves in you. I ask this in Christ's name and for his sake, amen. Amen.

NICK EICHER, HOST: Tomorrow: More on election results. We’ll head down-ballot and let you know more about the congressional balance of power. And, the art of the concession speech. That and more tomorrow.

I’m Nick Eicher.

LINDSAY MAST, HOST: And I’m Lindsay Mast.

The World and Everything in It comes to you from WORLD Radio. WORLD’s mission is Biblically objective journalism that informs, educates, and inspires.

The Apostle Paul wrote: “If we have sown spiritual things among you, is it too much if we reap material things from you? If others share this rightful claim on you, do not we even more? Nevertheless, we have not made use of this right, but we endure anything rather than put an obstacle in the way of the gospel of Christ.” —I Corinthians 9:11-12.

Go now in grace and peace.

WORLD Radio transcripts are created on a rush deadline. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of WORLD Radio programming is the audio record.