Rising political threats take US into uncharted territory as 2024 election looms

Driven by former President Donald Trump’s lies that the 2020 election was stolen from him, threats against election workers have exploded, with one in six reporting threats against them and many seasoned election administrators leaving the job or considering it. Experts warn they can be precursors of political violence. Experts warn the escalating rhetoric could increase the risks of violence, especially as the 2024 election and Trump’s trials draw closer. Still, experts warned against presuming that too many Americans are so radicalized that they might engage in politically motivated violence. Joe Mernyk, a doctoral student in Stanford University’s Polarization and Social Change Lab, surveyed Democrats and Republicans about their support for political violence and found it to be very low.