WKU’s Department of Political Science held a post-election analysis event, called “Politics and Pizza,” on Wednesday in Cherry Hall. 

The event was led by WKU political science professors Saundra Ardrey and Joel Turner. Ardrey and Turner discussed the results of the recent midterm election at a national and state level.

“One of the first questions I’m continuously asking is, ‘why is it taking so long to get some of these results’?” Ardrey said. 

Ardrey and Turner explained that each state has a different system and different regulations when it comes to voting, which is why some states take significantly longer than others to get election results.

Ardrey spoke about the demographics of the election, specifically that “Gen-Z” had a high voting turnout and played a key role in the performance of the Democratic Party.

According to the Center for Information & Research on Civic Learning and Engagement, an estimated 27% of people between the ages of 18-29 voted in this month’s midterm, second only to the 31% youth voter turnout in 2018’s midterms.

Turner and Ardrey said the biggest issues of this election ended up being abortion and inflation.

“The Supreme Court decision that overturned Roe v. Wade disproportionately motivated Democratic voters, first-time voters, younger voters and women under 50,” Ardrey said.

According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, more than half of Democrats polled said the Supreme Court’s decision was a “major influence” on their vote. More than half of all voters, 51%, said inflation was “the single most important factor” of their vote.

The Political Science Department holds a post-election analysis event after each election, and Turner said they plan to continue doing it for future elections. 

“I think it informs people about what’s going on,” Turner said. “Some people may be in my class or Dr. Ardrey’s class and never hear the other side.” 

News reporter Jacob Latimer can be reached at jacob.latimer745@topper. wku.edu. Follow him on Twitter @jacoblatimer_.