Can watching sports make voters accept political defeats?

Watching athletes and coaches accept losses in televised sports may make viewers more accepting of political defeats, according to a study published in Political Behavior. When voters see sportsmanship in action, they are more likely to believe that an unfavorable election result was fair. Democracy works best when losing candidates and supporters accept electoral defeats.

However, this trend was disrupted after the 2020 U.S. presidential election, with a significant portion of the losing party expressing doubts about the voting process. Political scientist Alex Tolkin wanted to understand what encourages people to accept undesired election outcomes. He examined the idea of legitimating rituals, which are public, repeated behaviors that signify a contest was conducted fairly.

In sports, these rituals include post-game handshakes, press conferences where defeated coaches acknowledge their loss, and general displays of good sportsmanship. The study found that people learn how to behave in new situations by imitating the actions of others. Role models such as professional athletes and coaches serve as strong examples for millions of Americans.

While sports leagues enforce these behaviors, major political elections are less frequent in the U.S., and Americans witness more legitimating rituals in sports than in politics. Tolkin analyzed data from a panel study of 2,625 respondents, tracking their attitudes before and after the 2020 presidential election. The survey revealed that supporters of the losing candidate became less confident in the election process following the results.

Yet, watching sports moderated this decline in trust for losing candidate supporters. Watching sports more frequently was linked to a smaller drop in belief that the election was fair compared to those who rarely watched sports. The study also found that exposure to legitimating rituals in both sports and politics increased acceptance of election results.