Politics often relies on guesswork. We guess how people might vote and what they care about based on certain traits. Last week's election showed some of these guesses were right. Men mostly voted for the GOP, and women leaned towards Democrats. College grads tilted progressive, while working-class voters favored Republicans. Cities and rural areas had their usual differences.

But some guesses were way off. Young people shifted right, and Hispanic and Latino voters backed the winner by record numbers. Black men helped the winner have the best Republican showing in almost 50 years. These results challenge common beliefs.

Both parties should reconsider their guesses. Republicans might focus more on working-class black and Latino voters. Democrats shouldn't assume young people or urban voters will always support them.

We also guess what people believe. We think black and Latino voters hold certain views on topics like education and immigration. But maybe not all of them do. Young voters might not all hold the most progressive views either.

We should stop making so many guesses based on traits. People are individuals with their own priorities. This could make politics less heated and more open to compromise. Even if this election was tough, it might help reduce the bitterness in politics.

voters surprise, election shakes up old ideas

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