The 2024 showdown explained

What you should know about Harris, Trump, and the future of democracy. [ESSAY]( [Is 2024 Really the Most Important Election in History?]( [By Michael Hirsh, a columnist for Foreign Policy]( Oriana Fenwick Illustration for Foreign Policy As part of our[Fall 2024 magazine](, FP columnist Michael Hirsh assessed how the U.S. elections could reshape geopolitics and U.S. foreign policy as we know it. Continue reading for a preview, and[join FP for even more]( news and analyses to stay ahead of the polls. [JOIN TODAY](   What exactly are the stakes of the 2024 U.S. presidential election? President Joe Biden and his anointed successor, Vice President Kamala Harris, have sought to lay them out in stark, simple terms. The election, Harris said at her rollout event as a presidential candidate on July 23, is “about two different visions for our nation: one where we are focused on the future, the other focused on the past.” Biden, in a speech from the Oval Office a day later, sounded the same theme: “America is going to have to choose between moving forward or backward.” These are, on the surface, fairly banal words, seemingly anodyne sentiments typical of presidential campaign rhetoric. Yet, in the present context, they are terrifyingly true. They are freighted with historic implications that could make this the most consequential election—for both the United States and the world—in U.S. history, historians and political experts say... [KEEP READING](   Your guide to the race. [Get elections coverage you won't find elsewhere.](   [Explore the Fall 2024 Magazine]( [How to Restore the American Center]( [A lesson from Kenya on bridge-building amid hyperpartisan politics.]( [By Martin Kimani, a former Kenyan ambassador to the United Nations]( [Isolationism Doesn’t Protect]( [The denting of U.S. democracy is felt across Europe.]( [By Arancha González, a former Spanish foreign minister]( [The Trans-Atlantic Partnership Still Matters]( [The United States, Britain, and the EU must constantly renew their alliance.]( [By Catherine Ashton, a distinguished fellow at the Wilson Center]( [Clean Energy Is Security]( [A policy path to address a warming climate on which both parties can agree.]( [By Jason Bordoff, Founding Director of the Center on Global Energy Policy]( [How to Restore the American Center]( [A lesson from Kenya on bridge-building amid hyperpartisan politics.]( [By Martin Kimani, a former Kenyan ambassador to the United Nations]( //link.foreignpolicy.com/click/36803384.246578/aHR0cHM6Ly9mb3JlaWducG9saWN5LmNvbS8yMDI0LzA5LzA5L3VzLWlzb2xhdGlvbmlzbS1ldXJvcGUtZGVtb2NyYWN5LWFsbGllcy1uYXRvLw/6442801f88c29c4d765242dcG9ebd3cfa[Isolationism Doesn’t Protect]( [The denting of U.S. democracy is felt across Europe.]( [By Arancha González, a former Spanish foreign minister]( //link.foreignpolicy.com/click/36803384.246578/aHR0cHM6Ly9mb3JlaWducG9saWN5LmNvbS8yMDI0LzA5LzA5L3RyYW5zLWF0bGFudGljLWFsbGlhbmNlLXVzLXVrLWV1Lw/6442801f88c29c4d765242dcG9a59e7d2[The Trans-Atlantic Partnership Still Matters]( [The United States, Britain, and the EU must constantly renew their alliance.]( [By Catherine Ashton, a distinguished fellow at the Wilson Center]( //link.foreignpolicy.com/click/36803384.246578/aHR0cHM6Ly9mb3JlaWducG9saWN5LmNvbS8yMDI0LzA5LzA5L2NsZWFuLWVuZXJneS1zZWN1cml0eS1jbGltYXRlLWNoYW5nZS11cy1wb2xpY3ktc3VwcGx5LWNoYWluLw/6442801f88c29c4d765242dcGf64ea259[Clean Energy Is Security]( [A policy path to address a warming climate on which both parties can agree.]( [By Jason Bordoff, Founding Director of the Center on Global Energy Policy](   [Stay ahead in a busy election year]( Get 90 days of expert analyses, diverse insights, and topical newsletters, just in time for the U.S. elections in November. [BECOME A SUBSCRIBER](   [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Instagram]( [LinkedIn]( [VIEW IN BROWSER]( Want to receive FP newsletters? [Manage]( your FP newsletter preferences. [MANAGE YOUR EMAIL PREFERENCES]( | [VIEW OUR PRIVACY POLICY]( | [UNSUBSCRIBE]( Reach the [right online audience]( with us. [Foreign Policy]( is a division of Graham Holdings Company. All contents © 2023 Graham Digital Holding Company LLC. All rights reserved. Foreign Policy, 655 15th St NW, Suite 300, Washington, DC, 20005.