Everyone wants to feel safe. It’s a need that transcends political divides—and one that politicians easily exploit for selfish ends.

The 2024 election, as we reported, took place during a historic drop in crime. But one candidate and his party have done it repeatedly false and racist claims about chaos in American cities. Most voters were either swayed by this rhetoric or made up their minds despite the lies, choosing to return Donald Trump to the White House and handing Republicans gains in the Senate, states, and possibly the House of Representatives.

Trace’s mission to report on gun violence means safety is at the center of our beat. As a non-profit, non-partisan newsroom, we do not make endorsements. However, we believe deeply in truth, responsibility, reason and the common good. So, yes, many of us – perhaps like you – are bewildered by the outcome of the election.

We also know that we cannot afford to despair. Not when there’s so much to do.

The readers who make our journalism possible have told us they depend on The Trace to help them better understand our country’s unique problem with gun violence and what it will take to solve it. They trust us to continue to pay attention to this issue, no matter what story occupies the national press corps. They empower us to produce investigative journalism that exposes the true motives of special interests that profit from pain and fear. We are clear-eyed about the challenges ahead in the coming months and years. And we will be determined to fulfill the responsibility entrusted to us.

Nationally, that will mean keeping an eye on efforts to roll back elements of the bipartisan Safer Communities Act, which had the support of 15 Republican senators when it passed in 2022 but has since faced attacks from gun rights groups . Our reporters will also report on the fate of public investments in community violence prevention that have coincided with consecutive double-digit declines in the gun homicide rate. Notably, none of the significant federal advances in violence prevention over the past four years have imposed new restrictions on firearm ownership. Eliminating these reforms would deny vital interventions to some of Trump’s supporters while handing only a token victory to Second Amendment absolutists. By telling these stories, The Trace’s reporting has the potential to protect measures proven to save lives.

The gun industry will also continue to warrant close scrutiny: Firearms companies boomed during the Obama years, and likely expected another bumper home if a black woman ascended to the Oval Office; now, they will look for other means to stimulate demand and cover their margins. We will also continue to monitor the changing legal landscape. Gun groups, seizing the Supreme Court Bruin decision, they have flooded the courts with lawsuits that sought to overturn gun safety laws. Some of these cases, The Trace has documentedit is based on distortions and untruths that must be exposed before it can influence judges. Others, we have plowingthey are financed by secret financiers who should not be able to operate in the shadows.

Regardless of what happens in Washington, states and cities will have options for reducing gun violence during Trump’s second term. We see an urgent opportunity for The Trace journalism spread awareness of the strategies and tactics that have worked best. When a governor signs a new gun violence prevention law or a mayor announces a new initiative, The Trace will be there to report on whether it’s being implemented effectively and fairly. Journalism often overlooks that aspect of governance, but failures to track it can breed the cynicism that autocratically inclined politicians exploit. We are committed to filling that gap in coverage while expanding resources to local journalists who want to improve reporting on gun violence in their communities.

These are just some of the stories The Trace will struggle to tell. We use that word—struggle—reluctantly; we are not an advocacy group, nor members of any resistance, as one of our colleagues in the media said. Put L. But as another observer did he pointed out“When you’re at war, you’re at war whether you like it or not – even if all you’re doing is reporting the truth.” As we prepare for the next four years, we feel fortunate for the rapid mobilization now underway of fellow newsrooms and First Amendment groups coming together to defend press freedom.

As election analysis continues, we thought about another number: The 50 percent of U.S. adults who say they lost a family member to gun violence, were injured by guns, were threatened with a firearm, or witnessed someone being shot. They did not choose to bear these scars. But journalism can ensure that their voices are heard. With your help, The Trace will continue to light the way to a future where everyone has the safety they deserve.