Brad Rateike: Not happy with election results? Get involved.

Congratulations, Indiana. You have next year off. No elections in 2025—not a primary, not a general. No TV ads, no political contribution (for the most part). For everyone else, you can take a deep breath once you get over whatever angst/elation you feel about this year’s outcome (which I do not know at the time I am writing this). We should all take solace in that.

I remember in 2020, I took a month off social media. I was walking around my condo feeling manufactured “stress” that I didn’t necessarily need to feel. I took the affiliated apps and buried them three pages back on my smartphone.

For a time, it was delightful. I did work, I watched TV—maybe “Tiger King,” possibly some “West Wing” reruns, “Seinfeld.” No reels about golf or barbecue food hacks or marriage stereotypes. I was comfortably numb.

Sadly, it was short-lived. Working in professional services in the communications/reputation management business, I am expected to pay attention to what is happening in the world, which includes paying attention to social media. I caved and went back to it. And I have no good answer for the “why.”

This election cycle, I have been exhausted by “chatter” and “misinformation” and statements of “certainty” even when there is no way to be certain about anything. The polls “show,” the pundits “know,” and we are all left to decipher it—as if we can vote with anything other than our gut and our preference/judgment.

What do I do if I am not happy/mad/distracted/anxious about politics, you ask? Anything. Lots of things. Most days, I wake up and wish I did not “care” about the outcomes of elections, because that would be easy. But I do care—I care a lot—and I always will.

If you are not satisfied with the outcome of the election or the choices you were given at the ballot box, find a way to influence it. I do not believe that if you are unsatisfied, it means you need to run for office yourself. I do not possess that DNA, so I am the last person to try to conscript anyone into running.

However, many of us
know people who would serve with distinction in public office. And some of us know people who would serve with distinction AND make great candidates. Some people do not check both boxes. If qualified people do not run, they will not have the opportunity to serve (with a couple
of exceptions).

We need those elected to do well. Too many issues that impact our lives depend on it. If your preferred candidate won, do all you can to support them and/or provide constructive feedback to help them improve. If your preferred candidate did not win, do all you can to support them and/or provide constructive feedback to help them improve. You can take a different tack, trying the “let no tree take root” approach and challenging every decision (right or wrong) for the sake of setting the officeholder up for perpetual failure, but that is often a house built on ego, and no one wins there.

We are privileged to be happy on Election Day, and we are privileged to be disappointed on Election Day. Let us be one or the other and not be “mad” after our emotions settle. The future is too important, and there is no time to waste. Onward and upward and enjoy your next year “off” from electoral politics.•

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Rateike is founder and owner of BAR Communications and served as director of cabinet communications for President Donald Trump. Send comments to ibjedit@ibj.com.

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