Emory University News Release

Release date: Nov. 2, 2004

After the Election: Emory Experts Can Discuss Moving On

Contact:
Deb Hammacher, 404-727-0644, deb.hammacher@emory.edu
Elaine Justice, 404-727-0643, elaine.justice@emory.edu

The 2004 presidential election has been one of the most heated in decades. The electorate has never been so divided with a nearly 50-50 split, so half of voters will be disappointed with the outcome of the election. How do people move past the heated rhetoric to get along with friends, family and co-workers on the other side? How can the president help heal the wounds inflicted upon the national psyche by the bruising campaign? Emory University faculty members are available to discuss various aspects of life in the United States after the election.

• Robert Franklin, Presidential Distinguished Professor of Social Ethics, Emory's Candler School of Theology. "Because this campaign has exposed the raw divisions between people, our religious leaders across the board ought to be smarter about ways to move toward healing—not a false unity—but genuine healing. There ought to be a response in the faith community that embraces justice and reconciliation. It's not O.K. for public theologians to neglect their obligation to help bring people together." 404-727-0756 (w), rmfrank@emory.edu, frank222@aol.com.

• Michael Kang, assistant professor of law and election law expert, Emory Law School. "Any given election will have a certain degree of counting errors. In a very close election, the margin of error is so small that even a reasonable amount of error can flip the final result and make the difference in who wins. This puts a lot of pressure on election officials to get it right." 404-712-4243 (w), mkang@law.emory.edu.

• Bobbi Patterson, senior lecturer in religion. "For the most part, we surround ourselves with people like us, who think like we do and believe what we do. It is essential that we, in a deeply divided America, expand the conversation beyond our own circle. After Election Day, half of us will have won and half will have lost, but we all will still live in this country. We have to be able to talk to each other." 404-727-2541 (w), bobbi.patterson@emory.edu.

• Charles L. Raison, M.D., assistant professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences, and director of the Behavioral Immunology Clinic, Emory University School of Medicine. "People are going to become very much more passionate about the right to vote. The issues of the last election combined with the resulting extreme diligence at polling places have caused some annoyance and irritability from voters. There is a subconscious sense of losing the right to vote, even though nothing has really changed. Just like with the flu shot, the thought of losing something makes it more attractive." Media contact Kathi Baker, 404-727-9371 (w), kobaker@emory.edu.

• Randall Strahan, associate professor of political science and expert on American political leadership, can address the relationship between the president and Congress following such a sharply divided election, particularly regarding domestic issues. "The three domestic policy areas that will be most important after the election are taxes, health care and Social Security," says Strahan. Who wins the election will determine which of those issues becomes the focus of presidential-congressional relations and how that relationship goes. "If Bush wins, he will have to negotiate with the more centrist members in Congress to enact his domestic agenda. If Kerry wins, expect lots of conflict between the White House and Congress. The dynamics in that relationship will vary by winner also. If Bush wins, the Senate will be at the center of negotiations and if Kerry wins the House will be the center of conflict between the two branches." 404-727-7913 (w), randall.strahan@emory.edu.

• Drew Westen, professor of psychology and psychiatry at Emory, says that the Florida situation in 2000 and ongoing perceived attempts to disenfranchise voters can shake Americans' foundational belief that we live in a democracy. "This is very worrisome from a psychological and political perspective," says Westen. "If the winner does not get the popular vote, or if the election is once again tied up in the courts, the average person may well come to doubt that we have a democracy. This is particularly true when elected officials are appointing the judges who may be deciding elections." No matter how distraught those on the losing side are, however, they will return soon to their normal emotional state. "People tend to make dire predictions about their own emotional state if they don't get their desired outcome, but a lot of data show that a person has a range of emotional responsiveness that is normal unless something really traumatic happens. We tend to calibrate to an emotional state that defines who we are. For some this will take months, for others only days." 404-727-7407 (w), dwesten@emory.edu.