81: Does American politics still affect you when you move abroad?

If you’ve ever thought, “I need to get out of this country because of the crazy politics,” this episode is for you.

For many Americans, political burnout, polarization, and frustration are part of the reason they consider moving abroad. In this episode, we explore how U.S. politics continues to affect you after you leave—and how it doesn’t.

We cover:

• Why politics drives people to leave the U.S.
• What actually changes (and doesn’t) once you're living abroad
• Emotional and identity shifts
• The political landscape in your new country
• How distance can bring clarity

Living abroad doesn’t erase your connection to the U.S.—but it might give you the peace of mind you’ve been craving.

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Website: jordangiberson.com
Instagram: @jordan.giberson

Transcript

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Moving abroad changes how you relate to American politics emotionally and practically. You don't have to carry the same political weight that you've been carrying. It's okay to want out. It's okay to go. It's okay to move abroad and to get out and away from politics. Hey, my name is Jordan Giberson. I'm a Texas girl living and thriving in London. The best thing I've ever done? Moving abroad, hands down. And I'm passionate about helping others do the same. Are you curious about finding a job abroad? You're in the right place, friend. I'll teach you the tried and true secrets of how to make moving abroad a reality for you and how to live a fulfilling life once you get there. We'll cover topics like choosing the best visa for you, how to get a job offer in another country, how to get over your fear of moving abroad, and how to live a life you love once you get there, this is The Move Abroad Podcast. Hello and welcome to another episode of the Move Abroad podcast. Today we're discussing whether American politics still affect you when you move abroad. This is where Americans thinking about moving abroad, partially due to political burnout, the drastic polarization between political parties and beliefs, divisiveness or just overall frustration with the government and American politics overall. This episode will explore how American politics does and doesn't affect your life abroad, the emotional, practical, and identity level shifts that you might feel whenever you move abroad and what changes when you're no longer living in the US full time. If you've ever thought, I need to get outta this country because of the politics, this episode is for you. So the 1st thing I wanted to discuss in this episode is why American politics drives people to move abroad. A lot of Americans talk about moving abroad due to political reasons as their main decision for moving abroad. It might be because of frustration with the polarization and culture wars as the decades have gone by, I feel like the polarization between political parties has grown more and more, fear of losing rights. There are groups like people who are strongly believing in women's rights, LGBTQ plus rights, gun laws, etcetera. There are so many different reasons why people might be feeling like they're losing their rights. There could also be burnout from the constant news cycle and feeling exhausted from that, or just feeling unsafe or unheard. This can lead to a strong push factor even for people who love their country. You might love the United States, or maybe you are from another country. You might love the country they're from, but feel completely frustrated by the political landscape and political reasons might be one of your main reasons for wanting to move abroad. When your daily peace of mind is affected by laws, rhetoric or division. It's not just politics, it's now becoming your quality of life. So that is why American politics tends to drive people to move abroad. So it might be one of your reasons, it might be your main reason for wanting to move abroad. I remember whenever, the recent election happened and yeah, I remember that the search volume and people wanting to search for moving abroad, it increased like crazy. It has studied out since then, for sure. But it was really interesting whenever, the election first happened and it was announced that a number of people who searched moving abroad, it did go up like crazy. So it does drive people to want to move abroad and to consider that. I remember I actually met a couple in Florence a few years back and they said that they moved abroad for political reasons and that was their main reason for moving abroad. And when the current person in power stepped down that they would then move back to the US. So it sometimes is people's main driving factor, but I've also met people who are moving abroad primarily because of the adventure and for, you know, maybe a better job or for whatever reason. But they're like, well, and it doesn't hurt to get away from the US because of the political landscape. So it might be your primate factor, it might be just one of the factors. It might not be a factor for you at all, but there are some Americans who are driven to move abroad because of the political landscape. So that's why American politics drives people to move abroad. Now let's discuss what actually changes when you do move abroad in terms of the political landscape and how it affects you. So one thing is that you're removed from the 24/7 US media cycle. You're going to have less exposure to breaking news, political fights, and constant outrage that you might feel and notice whenever you're living there. You might start to focus more on local issues like public. Like public transportation or just integrating and learning the language and different things that are just going on around you as you get used to your new space and, your new country abroad. So you are removed from the 24/7 US media cycle, and so you won't be affected by that as much unless you decide to continually read the news all the time, then that might not affect you as much, but you are removed from 24/7 US media cycle whenever you move abroad, and you might have a bit of separation from that. Another thing is that you'll start to see US politics from the outside. You will have a shift as you gain new perspective on the American system, the American way of doing things. The American government, whenever you move abroad, as with many things in life, your perspective will change because whenever we have distance, it provides a lot more clarity. So whenever you have distance from the United States and you have time, it does provide you with more clarity. So after a few months of living in your new country abroad, you'll then look at the US politics and you'll have a new perspective. And perhaps it'll be a refreshing perspective, where you feel like you can finally catch a breath and get a good grip on what the heck is actually happening. You might also see the US as one country amongst many, not as the default. Now, listen, I love the United States. I love that I'm American. I love that I'm from there. But you do start to realize that the US sees themself as the end all, be all the number one best country in the world. And let's be honest, the US is still the number 1 best country in the world in many regards. It's still seen as being the leader in countries around the world. So I don't blame Americans for thinking they're the best because they are the best and in many ways, and a lot of other countries do look up to the US and see the US as a leader, and they follow the US politics and what's happening in the United States a lot. And they want to see what's happening because it does kind of trickle down and affect them at some point. So people do care a lot about American politics, even outside of the US and just what the US is doing in general with fashion and culture because all those things do kind of travel to other countries because the US is still a major leader in, leading other countries and what the US does, a lot of countries, it does trickle down and it does affect them in one way or the other. Maybe it's a few years down the line, maybe it's sooner, but other people from outside of the US do look up to the US. But you will start to see the US as one country among many, not as a default. And what I mean by that is that some countries you might notice do things better. You might move to Spain and realize that they do the schooling system so much better than the US or something like that. Like you might notice some things in other countries where they do things so much better than the US So you might grow appreciation for things that other countries do better and you might also grow more appreciation for the US and how the US does things after you leave and you might look back and say, wow, I thought that the American school system was really bad. But actually we have a lot of the best universities in the world, for instance, and we have the best professors in the world. So you might kind of look back and knows those things from the outside looking in. So you do gain new perspective on the American system, and how other countries do things better. So that was another thing. You start to see the US politics from the outside. Another thing that actually changes whenever you move abroad is that you will feel emotionally lighter. More than likely, you will not have the constant arguing with relatives or defending your views or feeling like your friendships are based off of political views and whether you align on that, I feel like there is a lot of divisiveness. There is a lot of us versus them, and a lot of extreme polarization between groups and people tend to group together with those who also have similar political beliefs. So you might feel emotionally lighter not having that constant pressure of who believes in what and making sure you don't say the wrong thing and not opening up conversations with relatives or, speaking about your views on certain things whenever you feel really strongly about it. Because you don't wanna ruin a friendship with, a group of people, so you don't have that constant emotional stress in your relationships with your family and friends, which is so nice. So you might not have the constant arguing. I remember recently we were together as a family and one of my aunts brought up her political views and something that really frustrated her and she got fired up. She was fired up. She was speaking very loudly and drawing a bunch of attention with everyone at different tables and in this home and anyways, some people got involved and were trying to hear her out and give their points of views, but she was not having it. And anyways, it ended up being a bit of a mess. Some people left early because they were like, I don't wanna deal with this. Which is quite sad that the, political views do divide people, divide families and divide friendships. So you might also feel emotionally lighter by moving abroad, so you won't have that constant emotional, with the political divisiveness, I guess you could say. You also can create mental space for other things in your life in general with your relationships, nature, creativity. You just have more mental space perhaps for other areas of your life, especially as you're moving abroad and exploring the new country abroad. So I'd say those are a few things that actually change whenever you move abroad. You're moved from the 24/7 US media cycles, so that won't be constantly ringing in your ears, you will start to see US politics from the outside looking in, you often will feel emotionally lighter as well. So I'd say those are some of the things that will change whenever you move abroad. The volume of US politics turns way down and you might realize how loud it was all along after you move abroad. So I'd say that's what actually changes whenever you move abroad. So let's talk about what doesn't change. What doesn't change is that you are still a US citizen. And because you're still a US citizen, you will still pay taxes. And that's also just as a side note, if you earn above the foreign income exclusion limit, which is about$120,000 a year, but even if you earn more than that, there's so many tax fees and ways around that. So don't stress about that too much, but you still have to file for taxes as a US citizen. You still vote in US elections if you'd like to. I voted in the recent elections so you can still vote. Even if you move abroad, you're still also affected by foreign policy currency fluctuations. So if most of your money is still in US dollars, but maybe you move to another country and you're earning in euros. For example, then you still will be affected by the currency fluctuations and domestic politics that impacts citizens abroad as well. So you still are a US citizen. You're still going to be affected by a lot of the things that happen to US citizens, but you are still kind of partially removed from that because you're living in a different country. So that's one thing that doesn't change. You're still a US citizen. Another thing that won't change is that your family and friends back home still live under the US laws and are still going to be affected just as much by politics. Their lives may continue to be affected by decisions that you disagree with or agree with. You might feel guilt, sadness, or anger from watching from afar of how your family, friends are affected by it, but you still might feel that as well from afar. I still know a lot of people that are still affected quite heavily by politics in the US even though they're living in another country. So you might still feel all of those things, but perhaps it'll be lessened a little bit because you're not actually living there. So you will have a bit of separation, but your family and friends back home will still have those effects of the politics. So that's not going to change for them. And whenever you go back home, you might still be wrapped up in political conversations with your family. If your family likes to talk politics and if they come visit you, they might wanna be discussing it, and people abroad still will ask you questions about politics. That's not going to change. They're still going to know that you're American. The second you open your mouth, they're like, oh, you're American. What do you think about? Politics, what's happening? People like to discuss that and like I said, a lot of countries outside of the US still see the US as a leading country and follow the US politics really closely. So they might be asking you questions. I have people that ask me questions still, so you might be asked about American politics in views on things, but I do think that being outside of the US you feel less pressure and like emotional pressure. I think being farther away. So those are some things that won't change. You're still a US citizen. You'll still have taxes, election. You'll be able to vote currency fluctuations. Your family and friends back home will still love it. Your family and friends back home will still live under US laws and be affected by politics. So those are some things that won't change. You can leave the physical country, but you may not fully leave the emotional and legal ties. So that's just something to note on the things that don't change. So, we've talked about things that do change and things that don't change whenever you move abroad in regards to politics. Now let's talk about politics in your new country abroad. So unless you plan on moving to the middle of the mountains in the middle of nowhere, by yourself in a cabin and being a hermit, you are still going to be affected by politics. No matter where you go, no matter where you escape to, you still will be under a government. You still will have politics because you'll have a government. Every country has government, so every country has politics. So you're never going to fully escape politics. It's a thing that will always exist that you cannot escape. So in saying that, I will say no country is perfect. Even Europe has its own political dynamics and political issues. There are big immigration debates. There's still quite a bit of tension between the UK and the rest of the EU after the UK has left the EU. So there's tension with that. Just as an example. There are housing issues across the European countries depending on where it is. So there are some far right movement gaining traction. There are some far left movements gaining traction. There is always going to be political divide and different ideas of doing things and, different people gaining power. And having leadership in a government whenever they really shouldn't or, a lot of people are unhappy about their leadership. I'd say it's quite rare for a country to be super happy with the person in leadership or all the people in leadership. There's always going to be imperfections because again, no country is perfect and Europe has its own problems as well, but a lot of Americans. Feel that these stakes are lower. They feel that the stakes are lower, the discourse is less extreme or less personal because they're not as personally and emotionally tied to the country that they're living in. They won't feel as much pressure to get involved in politics or feel as strong of opinions as they might feel in the US, where they're from and where they grew up, et cetera. Systems like healthcare and education are not so deeply polarized, and I think there's just less political polarization in general. I feel like the US is so deeply polarized. It's so drastic, and I feel like between the political parties, it's people are quite hateful towards one another based on their political parties and lose or gain friendships just based on what they believe politically. And I don't feel like it's that strong in other countries abroad. I don't think that the divisiveness and aggression between political parties is as polarized and aggressive, which is a breath of fresh air, but there is still politics. So that is still a thing just to be aware of. And you might not be able to vote for years until you get your naturalization, which just means that you can become a citizen. And as an American US citizen, you are allowed to get dual citizenship. So if you move to another country abroad and you decide to get your citizenship there and you wanna get a passport there, then you can do that eventually In most European countries, some European countries don't want you to get dual citizenship, but the US does allow it. So you might not be able to vote in that country for years. So you might not feel the pull towards learning about politics or getting involved in politics because you can't really vote anyways. So you do observe more than you participate in your new country abroad. So you won't feel that, that emotional tie as much. So you might not escape politics, but you'll likely feel less personally consumed by it whenever you move abroad. So that's a bit on the politics in your new country abroad. Now let's shift a little bit and talk about how you might have a bit of an identity shift and a bit of political clarity as well. Moving abroad creates distance, and distance brings clarity. I talked about that a little bit earlier, but whenever you leave and you have time away, it will bring you a lot more clarity. Some Americans even become more politically active from abroad. Perhaps it is because there is a bit of a distance and it brings you a bit more clarity and you feel a bit more freedom to get involved without the emotional oppression that you might feel whenever you're living in the country. So some Americans do become more politically active from abroad. Others will disengage and focus inward or locally more. That might be more the people that we're having strong issues with the political system in general. They might need to just completely disengage and move abroad and just be completely distant from it and just focus on themselves and ingredients to the new country and focusing on the local issues and just kind of enjoying life abroad as well, and not focusing on politics and getting sucked in and just enjoying life and building a life abroad as well. A lot of people might find that their views evolve whenever they're exposed to different models of governance as well. You might move abroad and experience your new government abroad and how they do things, and you might say, wow, they do this so well, X, Y, Z thing that they do, or how they structure their government. And you might just be exposed to different ways of doing things and because you have that distance and you have more clarity and you're seeing different ways of doing things in different governments and how they've done things, and you might see that they've done certain things really well. That might also change your views in the United States politics whenever you have had a bit of distance and a bit of time. You might also begin to question things like, what parts of my identity are American and what do I value now that I see other systems at work? Whenever you move abroad, you might find yourself feeling more American in some ways, and you might find yourself feeling less American in others, especially as you are seeing other ways of doing life in general. I mean, politics is one thing and seeing the government, but also just life in general, you might say. Wow. I really miss that thing in the US we do that so well. But this other thing, I really don't like how we do that in the US and this other country does that so well. So you might kind of feel more pulled to that country or feel like you're kind of, have one foot in one country and one foot in the other, like in the US and in your new country because you feel kinda like you identify with certain pieces of both, which I think is one really interesting thing about moving abroad that you will realize after being there for a couple years. So yeah, I think that's a bit on the identity shifts and political clarity. And our last section that I thought would be nice to talk about is that moving abroad and escaping politics can help you get some peace of mind. Choosing peace, stability and safety is valid. You're allowed to leave a system that doesn't feel like it's working for you. Moving abroad doesn't mean abandoning your country. It means choosing your wellbeing. You can still advocate, you can still vote, you can still care, but from a place that gives you breathing room. You can care deeply without being consumed, I guess is my point. Moving abroad can give you that emotional space that you really need. So moving abroad and escaping politics can give you peace of mind, can give you more stability, it can make you feel safer, and that is a valid thing and is a bonus of being able to move abroad. So whether moving abroad because of politics is one of your biggest reasons or not, it can give you that peace of mind. Even if it wasn't one of the biggest reasons you wanted to move abroad, you might realize that it does give you a lot more peace, because you are separated and you have a bit of distance from the political landscape in the US. So does American politics still affect you whenever you move abroad? Yes, it does, but not to the extent that it probably would if you were to stay in the US. So today we've discussed why American politics drives people to move abroad. We've also discussed what actually changes whenever you move abroad, and then we've also discussed what doesn't change after moving abroad. And then we also discussed politics in your new country because you can't just escape politics altogether unless you plan on being a hermit in the middle of the mountains. And then we've talked about some identity shifts and getting political clarity once you move abroad, and then moving abroad and escaping politics just to get peace of mind, we discussed that as well, and that that is okay. And it is valid to choose your peace, stability, and safety. So moving abroad changes how you relate to American politics emotionally and practically. You don't have to carry the same political weight that you've been carrying. It's okay to want out. It's okay to go. It's okay to move abroad and to get out and away from politics. Maybe it's your primary reason, maybe it's one of your reasons, maybe it's not a reason for you at all to move abroad just because of politics. But regardless, it's okay to go and it's okay to realize that actually it's a breath of fresh air to escape American politics, and it's a relief to be away from the emotional weight of it. So just to leave you with a bit of encouragement, you are not alone in feeling this way. This is very valid and a lot of people do feel the emotional strain from politics, so don't feel like you're alone in this. That is very, very common. As I said, the number of surges on Google for people wanting to move abroad spiked like crazy during the last elections. So you are definitely not alone. There are a lot of people that are also looking into moving abroad. So if you do want to move abroad and that's something that you're interested in doing. I do have a free quiz that basically will match you with your perfect European city for your lifestyle and what you're looking for. You can find the link in the podcast description, so you can just click on the link and you'll take the quiz and I'll take under 2 minutes. Or you can also go to Jordangiberson.com/quiz and take the quiz. But I just wanted to say in closing, thank you so much for listening to another episode of the Move Abroad podcast. If you do know a friend who has been dealing with political instability in the US and feeling really frustrated with politics and you feel like they might appreciate listening to this episode. And if you feel like you have a friend who has come to mind, who has had issues with politics in the political system in the US or whatever country you are currently living in, and you feel like they can benefit from listening to this episode, please feel free to send them a link to this episode. I would be super grateful and I hope that it would be really helpful for them. I hope it was helpful for you. So thank you so much for listening to another episode of the Move Abroad podcast. I will catch you here again next week, same time, same place. I'll catch you then.