The unpredictable presidential election is over, and now the new commander in chief faces the difficult task of unifying the nation.
KMUW’s Deborah Shaar has reaction from one analyst who’s been watching the presidential race closely.
Wichita State University Professor and Political Analyst Jeff Jarman says the 45th president will inherit an anxious nation when assuming office in January.
He says president-elect Donald Trump will need to bring people together and make people feel like the country is moving forward.
"The real danger we face is that an overly partisan and polarized and engaged electorate gets increasingly frustrated when they don’t get the outcome that they want," Jarman says. "So the next president will face a real challenge in trying to bring people back together to make things better."
Most voters going to the polls Tuesday have a pessimistic view of the U.S. economy.
According to preliminary results of an exit poll conducted by the Associated Press and television networks by Edison Research, about 6 in 10 describe the state of the economy as not so good or poor.
But that economic unhappiness isn't as high as it was in 2012, when three-quarters called the economy not so good or poor.
Among voters today, 3 in 10 say their personal financial situation has gotten better in the last four years, while nearly as many say it's gotten worse.
More than half of voters say the economy is the most important issue facing the country, over terrorism, foreign policy and immigration.
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