Politics is the same at every level

The stakes are different, but it always comes down to relationships, emotions and who feels heard

People tend to think of politics as something that happens “out there” — in Washington, in Raleigh, or on television. But the truth is, politics is just a word for what happens when people try to make decisions together.

And once you see that clearly, you realize something important: Politics is the same at every level.

There’s really no meaningful difference between a race for HOA president and a campaign for governor. The stakes might be different. The scale might be different. But the dynamics — the incentives, the behavior, the coalitions and cliques, the factions and fault lines — are the same.

Whether it's the West Wing, the governor’s mansion, or the neighborhood HOA, the machinery runs on one fuel: human nature.

A swim club case study

I recently saw it play out in my suburban neighborhood’s swim club election.

Instead of Democrats and Republicans, it was pickleball players versus tennis players, pool volleyballers versus toddler moms. But there were still entrenched incumbents. Ins…