More than a week after the 2020 election, it’s fair to ask, “what just happened?” The results point to deep divisions within both parties, and in many states, including Connecticut. We saw historic voter turnout, aided by special “pandemic rules” that made mail-in voting a reality for the first time here. But we still saw long lines at polling sites, and in some states new restrictions on the number of polling places. We’ve heard calls for “unity,” both across the political divide, and within political parties, while others continued pointing fingers of blame for unexpected losses. And, we’ve seen shifts on Connecticut’s political map, with former Republican strongholds turning blue, and pockets of red creating new challenges for Democrats.

In this CT Mirror post-election special called “What Just Happened?” recorded this last Tuesday, I talked about all of these issues with Leah Wright-Rigueur, the Harry Truman Professor of History at Brandeis University, and Susan Bigelow, award-winning columnist for CTNewsJunkie.com.

John is CT Mirror's Director of Events. A well-known and highly-regarded radio personality and moderator, he divides his time between CT Mirror — where he heads up our events program and serves as a multi-platform consultant — and the NPR / PRI program Science Friday. Previously, John was executive editor of the New England News Collaborative and the host of NEXT, a weekly program about New England. He also appeared weekly on The Wheelhouse, WNPR’s news roundtable program. His 25 years in public media also include serving as vice president of news for Connecticut Public Broadcasting Network, host of WNPR’s Where We Live, and regular fill-in host for the PRI program Science Friday in New York. He was twice recognized by PRNDI as America’s best public radio call-in show.

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