Mike Francesa on The Mike Francesa Podcast Photo credit: The Mike Francesa Podcast

Mike Francesa used to love Election Day and all the trimmings until former president Donald Trump went and sucked the joy out of it.

Francesa has long discussed his interest in presidential history and politics, spawned by his affinity for John F. Kennedy. The former WFAN host has also often boasted about his excitement surrounding Election Day and the way the event gets covered on various networks. But knowing Trump will challenge any election loss is putting a cloud over the day this year.


“I love Election Day,” Francesa said on a recent episode of his podcast. “What has taken a lot of the history and the joy out of it is all the accusations about it not being on the level. Because spending so much time with so much tedious stuff about that part really has stripped it of its historical perspective and really hurt the whole process.

“It’s an annoyance. I’m sick of hearing it. I’m sick of listening to it. And the idea that we would go through that again is nauseating. Absolutely nauseating. I would hope that win or lose, Trump would take a defeat in stride. But he won’t. It’s just not his nature. He can’t accept defeat on any terms. So that will not happen. If he loses, he’ll be screaming just like he did last time. And that is really bad for the country.”

If Trump loses the 2024 presidential election to Democratic nominee Kamala Harris next week, he will cry fraud just as he did four years ago when he was defeated by Joe Biden. Trump has desperately tried to cast doubt over America’s democratic process, attempting to overturn the election results in 2020 and repeating baseless claims that he was cheated out of the presidency. And his refusal to go quietly has Francesa bracing for Trump’s attempts at further dividing the country next week.

Francesa was a staunch Trump supporter in 2016, believing the polarizing businessman and media personality was “a builder” out to build a better country, not someone just looking to feed his ego. But Francesa’s opinion of Trump turned in 2020 when he ripped the president’s inept handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and ultimately voted for Biden. Last year, Francesa dubbed Trump “unelectable.

Francesa has not stated who he’s voting for in this year’s election, but like most of America, he’s already bracing for Trump’s antics and attempts at further dividing the country next week.

[The Mike Francesa Podcast]

About Brandon Contes

Brandon Contes is a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. He previously helped carve the sports vertical for Mediaite and spent more than three years with Barrett Sports Media. Send tips/comments/complaints to bcontes@thecomeback.com