How did the economic crisis and the election impact each other?

Undoubtedly, the economic crisis had an impact on how both the presidential and the senatorial campaigns were run, and also perhaps an impact on the results of these elections. It’s also entirely possible that the elections had an impact on the economic crisis, too.

When the economic crisis hit and the stock market started to lose hundreds of points in the course of one day, the polls showed a significant drop in the popularity of congressmen up for re-election, and also in support for John McCain. In these elections we saw some elements of retrospective voting, as many Americans rejected incumbents.

As many of our country’s senators were up for re-election, they needed to make sure they sent the message that they were sticking up for the little guy – that they favored “Main Street” instead of “Wall Street.” Concern about being re-elected caused them to be more careful in how they went about coming up with a solution for the economic crisis. It soon became clear that those in Washington had to both act quickly to avert an economic meltdown, and also had to reassure voters that they were acting in their interests.

The first bailout package failed in the House, and the stock market continued to fall. As more and more pressure was put on lawmakers to save the economy, voters made it clear that they saw the bailout bill as a bailout for rich companies and not for everyday people. Congress ultimately came to the conclusion that it was best to act decisively and quickly in order to find a “fix” for the economic crisis. A few changes were made in the package, and it passed. The swiftness of its passage caused the media to focus less attention on the economic crisis once the bill was approved.

In the end, the economic crisis had a big effect on the election, but the election also had a huge impact on the way the economic crisis was handled. Now that the election is over, the question becomes, how do we move forward? With the election behind us, many people are beginning to step back and re-examine how we handled the financial crisis, and some are questioning whether we moved too quickly.

Ultimately, the weight of this economic crisis, as well as the weight of the wars we are engaged in, will fall upon the shoulders of our new president, Barack Obama. Expectations around the world are extremely high, and our focus now will be on how Obama deals with these extremely difficult situations. Among his important transition choices: his Treasury secretary, and what kind of signal to send congressional leaders on an economic stimulus package.