FiveThirtyEight Politics - podcast cover

FiveThirtyEight Politics

ABC News, 538, FiveThirtyEight, Galen Drukefivethirtyeight.com
The 538 team covers the latest in politics, tracking the issues and "game-changers" every week.

Episodes

Democrats Notch A Win In The Battle For The Suburbs

In this late-night installment of the 538 Politics podcast, the crew breaks down the results of the special election in New York's 3rd Congressional District. Democrat Tom Suozzi beat Republican Mazi Pilip in a race to replace former Rep. George Santos. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Feb 14, 202440 min

The Political Conversation About Biden's Age

Voters in New York's 3rd Congressional District are heading to the polls on Tuesday to choose a replacement for former Rep. George Santos. In this installment of the 538 Politics podcast, the crew discusses the dynamics at play in the most high profile special election this year. They also look at Americans' perceptions of President Joe Biden's age, after a special counsel report described him as a “well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory,” and they talk about what comes next in the politic...

Feb 13, 20241 hr 1 min

The Data Points That Will Explain The 2024 Election

What is the most valuable data point to watch heading into the 2024 presidential election? This week on the 538 Politics podcast, we interviewed more than a dozen experts — pollsters, political scientists, data journalists — and asked them this one question. Their combined answers paint a picture of which variables will most influence the election this November. Galen and his guests cover voters' shifting perceptions of the two candidates, issues and key demographics that could make or break the...

Feb 08, 202442 min

The Tortured Pundits Department

How much influence does Taylor Swift actually have? Would her endorsement in a presidential election move voters? Has her presence at NFL games already created new fans among young women? Some have used polling to suggest it has, so in this installment of the 538 Politics podcast, we ask "good or bad use of polling?" The crew also looks at some of the minor primary contests between now and the South Carolina Republican presidential primary and spotlights the biggest takeaways from last quarter's...

Feb 05, 202450 min

How Americans Feel About The Economy

The conventional wisdom is that the economy and a president’s fate are closely tied. For much of Joe Biden’s presidency, part of the story has been that despite a strong labor market and economic growth, views of the economy and Biden’s handling of it have been abysmal. A lot of that likely had to do with inflation, rising interest rates and a declining stock market. Trends that, as of right now, have abated and even reversed. So what’s happened over the past three years and where are we headed?...

Feb 01, 202438 min

Will Politics Or Policy Win Out At The Border?

In this installment of the 538 Politics podcast, the crew explores the thorny negotiations surrounding immigration and border security in Washington. Galen talks to Carlos Odio, co-founder of Equis Research; Rachael Bade, author of POLITICO Playbook; and Leah Askarinam, 538 politics reporter. Together, the crew discusses evolving public sentiment on immigration, explores proposed policy changes and guesses what Americans think about the political landscape right now. Later in the show, Galen is ...

Jan 30, 20241 hr 8 min

The GOP Primary Is Basically Over

In a late-night New Hampshire primary reaction edition of the 538 Politics podcast, the crew concludes that the GOP primary is basically over, even if not literally. They dig into the results and exit poll data to describe the coalitions that backed Trump and Haley and explain why this was Haley's best shot at scoring a win. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jan 24, 202434 min

Is New Hampshire The End Of The GOP Primary?

The Republican primary is officially a two-person race. In this installment of the 538 Politics podcast, the crew talks about Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis dropping out of the presidential race, expectations for New Hampshire and the future of the Republican primary. They also consider whether a poll asking New Hampshire residents how well they understand the 14th Amendment is a good use of polling. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jan 23, 20241 hr 1 min

The View From New Hampshire

With New Hampshire’s first-in-the-nation primary quickly approaching, the FiveThirtyEight Politics podcast heads to the Granite State. Galen speaks with Annmarie Timmins, Senior Reporter at the New Hampshire Bulletin, and Neil Levesque, Director of the New Hampshire Institute of Politics at Saint Anselm College, about the potentially competitive contest between frontrunner former President Donald Trump and former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, as well as the nuances of New Hampshire’s electorate. ...

Jan 18, 202443 min

Trump Wins Iowa. Now What?

The crew reacts to former President Donald Trump’s decisive victory in Iowa, as well as the race for second place, in which Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis edged out former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jan 16, 202441 min

The Last Debate Before Iowa

With just days until the Iowa caucuses, the crew reacts to a head-to-head debate between former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, as well as a town hall featuring former President Donald Trump. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jan 11, 202444 min

No Sleep Till Iowa

The Iowa caucuses are just a week away, and in this installment, the 538 Politics podcast sets its sights on the early states. Galen speaks with celebrated Iowa pollster Ann Selzer about likely caucusgoers' views of the candidates and how things could change in the final week of the campaign. Later in the show, Galen is joined by ABC News reporters Kendall Ross in Iowa, Kelsey Walsh in New Hampshire and Gabriella Abdul-Hakim in South Carolina. They share their insights from months of talking to ...

Jan 08, 20241 hr 4 min

Do The Betting Markets Have 2024 Right?

The 538 Politics podcast is kicking off the new year with a game of Buy, Sell, Hold. There are a lot of unknowns as we start the year: Who will win the party nominations for president? Will a third party candidate break through? What will come of former president Donald Trump’s legal liability? And ultimately, who will win the White House, the House of Representatives and Senate? There are betting markets for just about all of these unknowns, so Galen asks the crew to make an assessment of the g...

Jan 04, 202454 min

There Has To Be A Better Way To Pick Presidential Nominees… Right?

Happy holidays, listeners! As we approach the Republican Iowa caucuses, we decided to re-air our audio documentary series, "The Primaries Project." This series originally aired in early 2020 and investigates how our modern primary system came to be, how it has shaped our political landscape, and how it might be improved. This is episode three of three. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jan 01, 202458 min

How The Primary System Has Shaped Our Politics

Happy holidays, listeners! As we approach the Republican Iowa caucuses, we decided to re-air our audio documentary series, "The Primaries Project." This series originally aired in early 2020 and investigates how our modern primary system came to be, how it has shaped our political landscape, and how it might be improved. This is episode two of three. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dec 28, 202349 min

Our Presidential Primary System is An Accident

Happy holidays, listeners! As we approach the Republican Iowa caucuses, we decided to re-air our audio documentary series, "The Primaries Project." This series originally aired in early 2020 and investigates how our modern primary system came to be, how it has shaped our political landscape, and how it might be improved. This is episode one of three. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dec 25, 202337 min

The 538 Podcast Holiday Party

In this holiday installment of the 538 Politics podcast, the crew looks back at some of the most important political events of 2023 as well as some of the weirder political stories of the year. They also debate the thorny question of which types of cookies can be considered "Christmas cookies" in a festive edition of "Good or Bad Use of Polling." To wrap it all up, they play "Guess What Americans Think" and guess the answers to polling questions like, "If Santa were a registered voter, which par...

Dec 21, 20231 hr 8 min

Reaction Podcast: Colorado Supreme Court Bars Trump From Ballot

On this special reaction edition of the 538 Politics podcast, Galen speaks with Kimberly Wehle, professor of law at the University of Baltimore, and Geoffrey Skelley, senior elections analyst, about the recent ruling from the Colorado Supreme Court that bars Trump from the Colorado Republican primary ballot. They discuss the legal grounding of this ruling, the political reaction and the prospect of the U.S. Supreme Court weighing in. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adc...

Dec 20, 202324 min

Trump's Primary Challengers Are Running Out of Time

The U.S. House adjourned for the holidays last week after voting along party lines to authorize an impeachment inquiry into President Biden. The Senate is delaying its holiday recess as negotiators try to hash out a deal that would include aid to Ukraine and Israel as well as funding for border security and possible changes to asylum law. In this installment of the 538 Politics podcast, the crew heads to Washington to discuss how Congress is closing out the year and what Americans think about it...

Dec 19, 20231 hr 7 min

Have Progressives Won The Economic Debate?

In early 2020, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez told New York Magazine that, “In any other country [she and President Joe Biden] would not be in the same party.” Yet, by April of that year, after Bernie Sanders dropped out, she “absolutely” threw her support behind Biden, saying “the stakes are too high when it comes to another four years of [former President Donald] Trump.” Since Trump’s victory in 2016, opposition to the former president has served as one of the strongest organizing principles for the...

Dec 14, 202336 min

What To Make Of Trump's 'Dictator' Comment

Former President Donald Trump attracted attention for his answer in a town hall with Sean Hannity last week suggesting he would not abuse his power as president in a second term, “except for Day One.” His answer came after extensive reporting on how his second-term plans would challenge democratic norms and accepted limits on presidential power on issues ranging from Department of Justice investigations to domestic use of the military. In this installment of the 538 Politics podcast, Galen speak...

Dec 11, 202351 min

Did The Fourth Republican Debate Matter?

Galen unpacks the fourth Republican primary debate from Tuscaloosa, Alabama with senior elections analyst Geoffrey Skelley and White House correspondent MaryAlice Parks. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dec 07, 202337 min

Is Nikki Haley The New Ron DeSantis?

In the month since the last Republican debate, former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley has been inching up in the national polls, while Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has been slipping. Today, DeSantis leads Haley by just 3 points nationally, 13 percent to 10 percent. They are similarly close in Iowa, and Haley leads DeSantis by a sizable margin in New Hampshire and South Carolina. Former President Donald Trump is at 60 percent nationally and 40-some percent in the early states. There were already rumblin...

Dec 04, 20231 hr 4 min

2024 Is The First ‘AI Election.’ What Does That Mean?

Exactly one year ago today, OpenAI launched ChatGPT. And quickly, the program changed the conversation around what is possible for artificial intelligence. In the past 12 months, we've seen campaign videos featuring AI-generated images, legislative proposals and a congressional hearing on AI regulation. By all accounts, the 2024 presidential election is going to be our first "AI election." However, often the specifics around AI’s impact remain vague. How exactly could it impact our electoral pol...

Nov 30, 202347 min

Why The GOP May Be Ready To Say Goodbye To Santos

The U.S. House gets back to work on Tuesday and one of its first orders of business is expected to be a vote on whether to expel Rep. George Santos of New York. A House ethics report concluded earlier this month that he “sought to fraudulently exploit every aspect of his House candidacy for his own personal financial profit.” In this installment of the 538 Politics podcast, the crew discusses how likely Santos is to be added to the only five House expulsions in U.S. history. They also look at ch...

Nov 27, 202349 min

What These Swing Voters Have To Say About The 2024 Election

What makes swing voters swing? In this installment of the 538 Politics podcast Galen heads to Simi Valley, California and speaks with voters whose preferences have crisscrossed parties in recent years. They explain how they’re thinking about politics today and why their views and identities may not fit neatly into one partisan bucket. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Nov 20, 202344 min

The Fight For Working-Class Voters

In 2016, as has been widely reported, white working-class voters shifted decisively to the right. In 2020, working-class voters of color followed suit to varying degrees, though still giving President Joe Biden a clear majority of their support. This has left both parties with the understanding that going forward a multiracial, working-class majority will play a pivotal role in their electoral fortunes. So why have we seen these recent shifts to the right and what will both parties do to either ...

Nov 16, 202351 min

If The 2024 Election Were Held Today, Would Trump Win?

To mark one year out from the 2024 election, Galen tries to make sense of the political environment based on all the data we have with a crew of election data nerds: G. Elliott Morris, ABC News editorial director of data analytics; Ruth Igielnik, editor for news surveys at The New York Times; and Lakshya Jain, partner at the election modeling website Split-Ticket.org. In recent days, a spate of polls have come out, mostly showing a similar picture: Not only does former President Donald Trump out...

Nov 13, 20231 hr 4 min

Haley Takes On Ramaswamy And DeSantis

The crew reacts to the third Republican primary debate in this late-night edition of the 538 Politics podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Nov 09, 202339 min

The 2023 Elections Were Good For Democrats

In this late-night edition of the 538 Politics podcast, the crew unpacks the results from election night 2023. Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear won reelection in Kentucky and Ohioans voted to enshrine abortion protections in the state constitution. The night was a decent performance for Democrats, despite a spate of recent polling suggesting Americans are pessimistic about Joe Biden's presidency. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Nov 08, 202328 min