In one sense, the 2024 election cycle has been exceptionally exciting. The leading Republican candidate has been indicted on a total of 91 felony counts and somehow has still run one of the most successful primary campaigns in American history. One of those indictments has devolved into a comical exposé of Democrat corruption. Meanwhile, the incumbent comes across to most Americans as a senile grandpa with major memory problems.

In another sense, the 2024 election cycle has been exceptionally predictable and uninteresting. Take, for instance, last night’s primary in Michigan. Former President Donald Trump swept the Republican vote by a large margin (he won 69 percent of the vote), and it became once again clear that Nikki Haley should stop wasting donor money and bow out (although she claims she won’t until after Tuesday’s voting at the earliest).

Furthermore, Trump managed to lead Haley across the state (including in Detroit and Grand Rapids) and was neck-and-neck with her in Ann Arbor. Of course, the fact that Haley’s best was in Ann Arbor wasn’t surprising either. The city is easily one of the most left-leaning university towns in the state, and Haley tends to do well with independents and liberal-leaning Republicans.

It’s a miracle if you managed to make it this far into this piece without your eyes glazing over. Frankly, this primary election stuff feels like a charade. Any American with two brain cells and a modicum of common sense could have told you in February of last year where we would be today. At this point, most Americans aren’t paying attention — and I, for one, certainly don’t blame them. (READ MORE: We Are the Conservatives (An Alternative Rhetoric for CPAC))

There are likely several reasons Americans seem to be losing interest in politics. One of them is that four years ago, in late February, we were all about to be locked away in our homes for months glued to daily updates coming from Anthony Fauci. Compared to the COVID-19 pandemic, which impacted every American’s daily life for months, the news cycle in 2024 has been strikingly irrelevant (although it does explain why we’re all paying more for food than we were a year ago). Unless the apocalypse happens, or the government starts conscripting men and women to fight in World War III, most people will likely continue to ignore politics.

Another reason could be a sense of defeated fatalism coupled with depressive realism. The news cycle is bad, and watching it begets only depression, not change. (READ MORE from the Spectator P.M.: Why Are We Having Less Sex?)

The more I think about this issue, the more I realize that the problem (at least for the media) is this: Simple novelty begets interest. If Americans don’t feel as though there is anything novel happening due to a lack of connection or understanding, they’re unlikely to be at all interested in what is going on.

This article is an excerpt from The American Spectator’s Spectator P.M. newsletter. Subscribe today to read future letters from our staff!