One Trend Shows How Politics-Obsessed We’ve Become

In a sign of how all-consuming politics has become, the share of people who say their lives will be greatly affected depending on who wins the presidential election has spiked significantly over the past few decades. (NBC News)

A recent NBC News poll: 62% of registered voters think the 2024 race winner will make a “great deal of difference” to them personally, the highest number since NBC News began tracking the question in 1992.

Since the 90s, there’s been a steady upward climb:

• Oct. 1996: 21%

• Oct. 2004: 45%

• Oct. 2012: 55%

• Oct. 2020: 56%

Context: Polarization and partisan hostility has risen substantially since the 90s — basically we have a much more negative view of our political opponents these days, making it a much bigger deal when our side loses.

Bubba’s Two Cents

You hear it all the time — whether it’s conservative pundits claiming we’re going to “lose the country” after every election, or liberals saying … well, pretty much exactly the same thing in fancier words. Doom is now baked into our politics. Is the prevailing vibe, that electoral stakes are extremely high because things are so bad, correct?

As University of Oxford professor Max Roser’s excellent essay, “The world is awful. The world is much better. The world can be much better,” suggests: no — but also, yes.