What do expats expect from the US election 2020?

A hot topic all around the world

This election is of high interest not only for Americans but also for expats all around the world. Indeed, as the world's largest powerhouse, the USA is constantly in newspaper headlines amidst the COVID-19 crisis and social unrest, as well as the new immigration restrictions. For Andy, a British expat who has lived in Australia before moving to Vietnam, "This is clearly going to be the most important election in the United States for a decade or so." Like millions of other expats, he's also paying close attention to the situation in the US. However, he believes that the current government was able to address many issues in recent years, especially in terms of security—an opinion shared by Celeste, a US retiree in Serbia. "I'm a retired teacher. I know first hand that if you don't study history, you will continuously be a bad decision making sheep your whole life."

But Hank, an American expat in Ecuador, strongly disagrees. According to him, the US healthcare system is one of the issues that's going to determine the outcome of the election. "Another health-related issue that is affecting the presidential election is getting tremendous publicity at the US Senate's Supreme Court confirmation hearings that are being televised this week. That issue is the potential repeal of Obamacare a.k.a. the Affordable Care Act, which protects tens of millions of persons with pre-existing conditions in the USA. To the extent that seniors are especially at health-related risks, this is a matter of high concern to expats, as seniors and soon-to-be seniors make up a disproportionately high percentage of expats. Many seniors/prospective expats decide whether to live, or continue to live, in their home countries or move abroad based on health care concerns such as pre-existing conditions coverage", says Hank. He adds that "Trump and Republicans want a justice who will help repeal the act (the Supreme Court hears the case next week) even though Trump and the GOP have not proposed a bill to replace it." This is why Hank is sure to vote by absentee ballot on November 3.

John, a US expatriate in Bangkok, John is more neutral in his approach. "I'm not saying that the Democrats and liberal side are great and the conservatives and Republicans are evil. I don't think US government leadership is what it should have been since Reagan's time, including Democrat positions and direction. Trump is only continuing past policies of making the wealthy more wealthy, and disregarding the common good". However, John condemns the way in which the media is actually portraying President Trump. "It's easy for the liberal half of US media to accurately portray Trump as making one bad decision after another, and exercising horrible judgment based mainly on self-interest, because that is really happening. But if Biden was elected and he supported unnecessary involvement in foreign conflict, or unrealistic military expense (more of the same), didn't address climate change, etc., the liberal media would give him a pass". For him, neither side is going to bring up a wealth gap, or deficit. "The US will face further decline if either candidate wins".

A word from expats living in the US

Foreign nationals who have chosen to settle in the USA also feel concerned about the general situation in the country. Sylvain, for instance, is a French entrepreneur who has lived in the United States for several years, and is very disappointed with the current state of affairs. For him, immigration shouldn't have been such a chaotic topic. “Mistreating Mexican immigrants, for example, does not help at all. To say that 'America is full, do not come' when there is a real labour shortage is totally absurd. They need to take thoughtful measures, ”he says. Sylvain also finds the electoral campaign nervously tiring. In fact, he's experiencing his third electoral campaign since his move, and he strongly believes that this is the worst of all campaigns. “At this stage, it isn't even a matter of respect, just decency. Things are getting worse, as evidence by the recent events in Michigan”.

Olivier, who lives in California, shares his views. "As a normal balanced person living in the US, I look forward to the day when the country can finally claim once again that it is a progressive country that can set an example for American exceptionalism to explain its success." However, according to him, the campaign isn't that intense in his side of the country. "California is one of these states strongly where Democrats are firmly anchored. So the candidates, be it Trump or Biden, don't bother since people will vote for the Democrat candidate anyway." Olivier also highlights recent revelations by the NY Times about Trump's unpaid taxes and his alleged excessive debts. "This is a real threat to national security", he says.

The global health crisis is expected to have a significant impact on the upcoming election, especially since President Trump recently tested positive for COVID-19 after his many controversial statements over the past few months. Today, the US has a record of 7.9 million cases and 216,000 deaths. Nevertheless, Julie, a young French expat, believes that the trend is changing. “Until recently, I honestly thought that the COVID-19 crisis would be against Trump with the appalling death toll and the lax administration. But in the past few weeks, I heard more and more Americans, who I believe would be voting Democrats in normal times, say that they fear a second lockdown and that Biden might harm the US economy with either a lockdown or stricter measures than Trump ”. For her, anything is possible today.