The 2024 election might be the most polarizing one of our lifetimes, with arguments also accepted for 2016. But this election follows up a chaotic 2020 election, and the potential for unrest and economic fallout is high heading into the end of the year. In turn, it has made people nervous for their wallets, and for the future. But it is also hampering people's desire to travel.
Anxiety over all the aforementioned problems has led to 64 percent of people saying they would not travel in the US due to potential unrest. In all, about 25 percent said they would stay home if Kamala Harris wins versus 16 percent if Donald Trump wins. People are just nervous about the future, and all the craziness that comes with out elections.
Travel expert Catherine Banks says this is a usual trend in election years, but this time it seems a bit elevated.
"People like to feel safe when they travel...it is an unnerving thing on a subconscious level for people to leave their home, state or country," she says.
According to travel website Navan, their domestic flight bookings are down 19 percent for the week of the election compared to last year. However, on the flip side, bookings for the week after the election are 42 percent higher.
All the ridiculous rhetoric from the Left has added fuel to the fear fire as well.
"If the rhetoric is making you feel unsafe anyway, then you are really less likely to take a trip that might challenges your boundaries as well," she says.
However, Banks notes that bookings have gone up pre-election once people have early voted.
"Once people cast their vote, then it is almost like it is all behind them, and now they can turn their attention to other things," she says.
She adds that now is the time though to book your 2025 travel plans. That is because deals are better right now, and it is a less busy booking time compared to the first quarter of the year.
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