51Âþ»­

As the eyes of the world turn towards the United States and the presidential election, 51Âþ»­ Leicester (51Âþ»­) has announced it will be hosting an event with two former US politicians to help better understand what the results mean for the UK.

Polling day in the US is on Tuesday 5 November, when either Republican Donald Trump or Democrat Kamala Harris will take their seat in the White House for the next four years.

Then, just a couple of weeks later, former US Members of Congress Cheri Bustos and Bob Dold will be on the 51Âþ»­ campus to consider what global impact the new president will have.

Congresswoman Bustos, a Democrat, and Congressman Dold, a Republican, are both from Illinois and will feature in 51Âþ»­’s annual Congress to Campus event on Thursday 21 November, which is organised by the university’s Politics and International Relations department.

Dr Andrew Sanders, Senior Lecturer in Politics and International Relations at 51Âþ»­, is an expert in US government and is looking forward to welcoming the Leicester community to the evening event.

He said: “It will be fascinating to get their perspective on the election result, as well as the role the new president will play over the next four years.

“Our alliance with the US goes back hundreds of years and we still tend to follow the US lead on important aspects of policy.

“The UKs influence on the world is dwindling and so its global relations are important. The UK’s position in the world post-Brexit has changed and it still has to broker trade deals.

“So, our relationship with the US is important geopolitically and economically. The US is still the global hegemony.”

Dr Sanders expects many hot issues in US politics to be covered, including women’s rights and abortion rights, policies in the Middle East, immigration, the economy, US views on climate change – in light of the hurricanes in Florida, the flooding in North Carolina and the reliance of the Illinois/Iowa Quad States on farming – and the threat of emerging markets in Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS).

He also sees Congress to Campus as an opportunity for the Leicester community to visit 51Âþ»­ and hear about the big political issues, as well as ask questions themselves.

Dr Sanders continued: “51Âþ»­ is one of a small number of places where you can study US politics and it is great for the public to be able to engage with the work we are doing.

“51Âþ»­ is a community institution and not just here for the people who come to study. We want to centre ourselves in Leicester and help the people of the city understand the big issues.”

Congresswoman Bustos and Congressman Dold both served around the same time in the House of Representatives. Republican Dold represented areas in northern Chicago – a traditional Democrat area – while Democrat Bustos represented the Quad Cities area on the border with Iowa – which is rural and traditionally more conservative.

Both of the politicians will be taking part in events throughout the day with 51Âþ»­ students and pupils from Leicester colleges.

Congress to Campus 2024 takes place on Thursday 21 November from 6pm to 9pm. It is a free event