Reveal

How Donald Trump Won the Presidency, Again


Listen Later

Donald Trump defeated Kamala Harris on Tuesday night to become only the second president in US history to win two nonconsecutive terms. (The last one? Grover Cleveland in 1892.) Trump won the presidency following one of the most tumultuous election years in modern US history—one that included an incumbent president pulling out of his  reelection bid, the vice president becoming the Democratic nominee a few short months before Election Day, and two assassination attempts on Trump.


A majority of voters elected Trump to return to the White House following a campaign often filled with violent rhetoric, misinformation, and disparaging comments about women, immigrants, and people of color. Harris was unable to build a coalition to defeat Trump, losing both the Electoral College and the popular vote after a campaign that initially energized Democrats around the country after President Joe Biden dropped out of the race.


“America has never had a Black woman governor,” says Mother Jones editorial director Jamilah King. “So the fact that America’s never had a Black woman president is not surprising. I don’t think we as a country were quite ready for it.”


In this Reveal podcast extra, host Al Letson sits down with King, as well as Mother Jones’ David Corn and Ari Berman, to break down how Trump won, why Harris’ campaign faltered, and where the nation goes from here.

  • Support Reveal’s journalism at Revealnews.org/donatenow
  • Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get the scoop on new episodes at Revealnews.org/weekly
  • Instagram
  • Listen: Red, Black, and Blue (Reveal)


    Read: America Meets Its Judgment Day (Mother Jones)


    Read: Republicans Defeat Ohio Anti-Gerrymandering Initiative With Brazen Anti-Democratic Tactics (Mother Jones)


    Read: Trump Wins the White House in a Political Comeback Rooted in Appeals to Frustrated Voters (Associated Press)

    Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
    ...more
    View all episodesView all episodes
    Download on the App Store

    RevealBy The Center for Investigative Reporting and PRX

    • 4.7
    • 4.7
    • 4.7
    • 4.7
    • 4.7

    4.7

    7,853 ratings


    More shows like Reveal

    View all
    Living on Earth by World Media Foundation

    Living on Earth

    464 Listeners

    On the Media by WNYC Studios

    On the Media

    9,065 Listeners

    Latino USA by Futuro Media and PRX

    Latino USA

    3,758 Listeners

    Afropop Worldwide by Afropop Worldwide

    Afropop Worldwide

    302 Listeners

    Radiolab by WNYC Studios

    Radiolab

    43,804 Listeners

    Live Wire with Luke Burbank by PRX

    Live Wire with Luke Burbank

    314 Listeners

    This American Life by This American Life

    This American Life

    90,763 Listeners

    Fresh Air by NPR

    Fresh Air

    38,090 Listeners

    The Moth by The Moth

    The Moth

    27,245 Listeners

    The World by PRX

    The World

    912 Listeners

    Snap Judgment by Snap Judgment and PRX

    Snap Judgment

    11,585 Listeners

    Criminal by Vox Media Podcast Network

    Criminal

    37,255 Listeners

    Death, Sex & Money by Slate Podcasts

    Death, Sex & Money

    7,729 Listeners

    Hidden Brain by Hidden Brain, Shankar Vedantam

    Hidden Brain

    43,259 Listeners

    The New Yorker Radio Hour by WNYC Studios and The New Yorker

    The New Yorker Radio Hour

    6,572 Listeners

    Embedded by NPR

    Embedded

    11,903 Listeners

    Code Switch by NPR

    Code Switch

    14,497 Listeners

    Ear Hustle by Ear Hustle & Radiotopia

    Ear Hustle

    20,507 Listeners

    Slow Burn by Slate Podcasts

    Slow Burn

    23,931 Listeners

    Things That Go Boom by PRX

    Things That Go Boom

    319 Listeners

    The Science of Happiness by PRX and Greater Good Science Center

    The Science of Happiness

    1,875 Listeners

    Throughline by NPR

    Throughline

    15,878 Listeners

    Suave by Futuro Media

    Suave

    1,499 Listeners