Fears of election-related unrest are prompting many Americans to reconsider their travel plans in November. This development comes amid polling showing that most Americans believe there will be violence after the election.
Travelers like Emily Reeve and her husband, of Portland, Oregon, usually travel for Thanksgiving. But this year, they are staying home. “I’m worried about being in a potentially volatile situation,” Reeve told NBC News. Leaders in the airline industry have chimed in on the matter, affirming that many people are concerned about the possibility of unrest:
Anxiety around the 2024 vote is causing some consumers to rethink where, when and with whom to travel, industry experts and travel agents say. Federal authorities, meanwhile, say their security procedures are sound heading into Election Day, Nov. 5.
Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian recently told CNBC he expected consumers to take “a little bit of a pause” in the weeks around the election, as the carrier has seen in the past. “People like to be home during the election period. They don’t want to be out traveling,” he said. “I don’t think they want to be spending money until they understand what’s going to happen.”
While the pandemic upended travel during the 2020 vote, Delta also saw demand flag in the run-up to the 2016 ballot before bookings rebounded in subsequent weeks. United Airlines executives said this month that they expect a similar pattern and “don’t think there’s anything to be surprised by.”
Still, 64% of U.S. adults said they would avoid traveling in the U.S. out of concerns about unrest, depending on who wins, according to a recent poll by the travel site the Vacationer. About a quarter said they’d stay home only if Vice President Kamala Harris is elected, while just 16% said they’d hold off only if former President Donald Trump wins; 24% said they’re staying put no matter the outcome, and nearly 36% said the outcome wouldn’t affect their plans.
Businesses are also on alert, said Kelly Soderlund, a spokesperson for the online business travel management company Navan. Its domestic flight bookings are down 19% for the week of the election compared with the same week last year. Bookings for the following week, though, are 42% higher than the preceding seven days and 82% higher than the equivalent week a year ago.