Americans will turn to booze, junk food to cope with election stress: poll
By Aaron Feis
October 27, 2020
Pull the lever and pour a shot.
That’s what plenty of Americans plan on doing come Nov. 3, with a new poll finding that 65 percent of respondents harbor moderate to high stress over the presidential election — and more than a few will turn to liquid courage.
The Harris poll of 2,050 American adults, conducted online between Oct. 22 and Oct. 24, additionally found that 48 percent of respondents are more stressed about this election than ones in years past.
To help cope, 46 percent of respondents said they’d be noshing on junk food as the results roll in, with 42 percent saying pizza was in their future.
But some said they’d be hitting the bottle as the ballots roll in.
Twenty-six percent of respondents said they’d be drinking beer, 23 percent will reach for wine and 15 percent will line up liquor, the Harris poll found.
And while the states break either blue or red, 13 percent of respondents will be going green, saying they’ll be consuming “cannabis products.”
But with the coronavirus pandemic again ramping up, there won’t be much strength in numbers, as 84 percent of respondents said they’d only feel comfortable with poll-watching parties of less than ten people.
The remaining 16 percent said they’d have no fear of larger gatherings.
Forty-six percent of respondents said they planned on watching the results roll in on Election Night.
Twenty-three percent said they just can’t bear to look, and would catch up with the results on Nov. 4.