Elaine Godfrey

Elaine Godfrey is a staff writer at The Atlantic. More +

Olivier Douliery / AFP / Getty

America Is About to See Just How Pro-life Republicans Actually Are

After the fall of Roe, some abortion opponents think it’s time to focus on expanding America’s social safety net. Will the rest of their movement join them?
- Elaine Godfrey
- June 26, 2022
Meg Kinnard / AP

The Triumph of a Sometimes-Trump Republican

South Carolina Representative Nancy Mace’s careful tightrope walk helped her win her primary, but it wasn’t the whole story.
- Elaine Godfrey
- June 15, 2022
The Atlantic; Redux

‘I’m, Like, This Close to Snapping’

Four years after the first March for Our Lives, X González’s hope for gun control has given way to deep frustration.
- Elaine Godfrey
- June 11, 2022
Nick Rohlman; The Atlantic

Are Iowa’s Democratic Days Gone for Good?

Presidents, senators, and first ladies doted on the Simpson children. Now they’re struggling to face their state’s post-Trump reality.
- Elaine Godfrey
- June 7, 2022
Benjamin Rasmussen

The Club That No One Wants to Join

After Columbine, a group of principals formed a support network for school leaders who experience mass shootings. Every year, they have more work to do.
- Elaine Godfrey
- June 6, 2022
Photograph by Ethan Aaro Jones for The Atlantic

Sharon McMahon Has No Use for Rage-Baiting

A Minnesota-based Instagram influencer is bringing Americans out of their echo chambers. How?
- Elaine Godfrey
- June 5, 2022
John Moore / Getty; The Atlantic

What It Feels Like to Lose Your Child in a Mass Shooting

Nicole Hockley describes her son’s death in the Sandy Hook shooting, and the long grieving process that the parents of 19 children in Uvalde now face.
- Elaine Godfrey
- May 27, 2022
Bill Clark / CQ-Roll Call / Getty

Brad Raffensperger Gets His Revenge

Brian Kemp beat a Trump-endorsed candidate last night in the state’s primary. Another Republican incumbent’s win was more surprising.
- Elaine Godfrey
- May 25, 2022
Brittany Greeson / The New York Times / …

The Election Denier Who Could Run Michigan’s Elections

Kristina Karamo was an unknown poll worker who claimed the 2020 election was fraudulent. Now she’s the Republican candidate for secretary of state.
- Elaine Godfrey
- May 22, 2022
Samuel Corum / Bloomberg / Getty

What’s the Point of Going to Brett Kavanaugh’s House?

Demonstrators have largely given up on changing the Supreme Court justices’ minds. But they’re still showing up.
- Elaine Godfrey
- May 12, 2022
Sarah Karlan / Bloomberg / Getty

The GOP’s Strange Turn Against Rape Exceptions

If Roe v. Wade is overturned, 22 states have abortion bans that would quickly become law. Many of those bans contain no exemptions for rape or incest.
- Elaine Godfrey
- May 4, 2022
Alex Wong / Getty

Iowa Is Closer Than Ever to Losing Its Place

“You play King of the Hill enough times and eventually you get pushed off your perch.”
- Elaine Godfrey
- April 11, 2022
Samuel Corum / Getty

Republicans Think They Can Win the COVID Funding Fight

GOP lawmakers are ready to move on from the pandemic. They’re betting that voters are too.
- Elaine Godfrey
- March 19, 2022
The Atlantic

Congressional Republicans Have Found Their Red Line

The GOP seems relieved to have bipartisan agreement—and to distance itself a bit from Donald Trump.
- Elaine Godfrey
- March 11, 2022
Mandel Ngan / AFP / Getty; The Atlantic

The Vibe Shift on Capitol Hill

The events of the past two years have frayed relationships and shattered trust. Can Congress find a new normal?
- Elaine Godfrey
- March 2, 2022
Charlie Neibergall / AP

Republicans Are Trying to Send a Message

By picking Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds to give their State of the Union response, Republicans hoped to show voters that some in the party just want to keep schools open, lower taxes, and stop teachers from talking about critical race theory.
- Elaine Godfrey
- March 1, 2022
The Atlantic

She Defended Democracy. Do Voters Care?

Secretary of State Katie Hobbs might wind up the only person standing between Arizona and the triumph of the Big Lie.
- Elaine Godfrey
- February 28, 2022
Kevin Lamarque / Getty

Biden’s Likeliest Supreme Court Pick

If nominated, Ketanji Brown Jackson wouldn’t necessarily change the Court’s balance. But she would make history.
- Elaine Godfrey
- January 26, 2022
Getty; The Atlantic

Trump Fans Have Found Their Safe Space

Many of the former president’s critics live in politically segregated bubbles. But his rallies are bubbles too.
- Elaine Godfrey
- January 20, 2022
Mario Tama / Getty

Trump Soft-Launches His 2024 Campaign

The former president’s message at his Arizona rally was as clear as it was dishonest: He didn’t lose to Joe Biden in 2020, and he’ll spend the next year working to elect Republicans who agree.
- Elaine Godfrey
- January 15, 2022

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