The Day After: Navigating the Post-Election Workforce Psychology

“The ballot is stronger than the bullet,” Lincoln famously said. Where I grew up, the opposite was true. Elections were mostly theater, with results decided behind closed doors, a stark reminder of how little the average person’s voice mattered.

In America, it’s different. Elections here are the real deal, and because they matter, people take them seriously. Anxiety and excitement build, pulsing through each campaign season until the big day, when millions of Americans cast their votes and collectively decide the country’s course for the next four years.

For some, the outcome is a dream come true; for others, it’s the worst-case scenario. Validation for one side, despair for the other. This isn’t a flaw in the system; it’s a feature. People here take voting seriously because their vote matters. In America, the ballot is indeed stronger than the bullet.

Now, with the election behind us, life needs to go on. We have companies to build, people to lead, and work to do. To do those things well in the days following an election, we need to understand the post-election psychology of a workforce.

The Winners
After losing a hundred games of backgammon, I finally beat my partner. For the next 24 hours, I had a bit of a spring in my step. It’s amazing what a little win can do—confidence, motivation, maybe even a bit of charm. With a big win those effects get supercharged.

But winning’s a double-edged sword. Big wins can chip away at empathy, turn generosity into gloating, and breed complacency. High-stakes wins come with high-stakes risks. And electing a President? That’s about as high-stakes as it gets—a defining feature of American democracy.
So, now you’ve got team members who feel like they’re on top of the world. You might not share their politics, but it’s time to put on the pro hat and help them channel the positives of winning without letting it get to their heads.

It’s not easy, especially if you are not part of the winning crew. But, a few days have passed, and it’s time to get to work and lead your team. And if you’re on the “winning” side, make sure you and your fellow winners don’t alienate the teammates feeling the sting of loss.
Achieving greatness will be much harder – maybe close to impossible – if you can only lead people you agree with. So if you are struggling with this, it’s time to level up.

The Losers
Managing the winners isn’t a walk in the park, but those on the losing side are the real lift. These are passionate citizens with strong opinions and a deep commitment to America. Their candidate lost—decisively—and they’re genuinely worried about what’s coming in the next four years. For leaders, that concern translates into real challenges.

The biggest issue? Employee engagement and productivity. Gallup has shown that election outcomes that divide society can deeply distract employees, fueling anxiety and driving down both engagement and productivity.

And it doesn’t stop there; these issues bleed into team dynamics. Organizational psychologists studying group cohesion have found that polarized environments can fracture teams, especially after contentious elections. A survey by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) found that 45% of US employees have experienced political disagreements at work, and 25% have experienced political affiliation bias.

While engagement and productivity dips may be short-lived, rifts within teams are hard to mend. The worst-case scenario? Colleagues who need to work together say things they can’t take back, making it impossible to collaborate effectively in the weeks and months to follow.

As a leader, you might be feeling low yourself, or you might be having a tough time empathizing with this group because your man won. It doesn’t matter. You are a leader and your job is to help your team avoid these pitfalls. Where should you start? By coming across as calm, collected, and confident. It’s not easy, but it’s the job.

Personally, I also think now is the time to put a pause on politics at work, and that only happens if you set the tone. I know some will disagree, insisting on “bringing their full selves to work,” but I just don’t see the upside in that right now. This isn’t the moment for a victory lap or a debate – it’s Q4 and we need to focus.