Where were you the last election?

What do you think the most important issues are in this election?

Do you think this will be the last election?

THE LAST ELECTION is a documentary, a podcast, and a flash ethnography about the United States on election day 2020. The semi-scripted framing story follows amateur podcaster Khadim Diop in the creation of his podcast titled “The Last Election”. As finalists in a podcast competition, Khadim and his creative partner, Xisko Monroe, create a podcast/audio ethnography about election day 2020. They record interviews and observations from the streets of Times Square from sunrise November 3, 2020, to sunrise November 4, 2020. Their podcast centers on three primary questions they ask every interviewee. Conflict arises between the podcasters when Xisko’s sister shows up to help and Khadim’s personal political choices are challenged.

Outside the pundits and the polls and on the streets with real people, this project is a portrait of a time and place in the USA that both confirmed and denied the prevailing notion that America is a divided nation. Despite the strong disagreements between Trump supporters and Biden voters, Khadim’s podcast seems to arrive at a message of measured optimism and love, a surprising but much-needed conclusion during a time defined by the global pandemic, political turmoil, and ecological disaster.