FiveThirtyEight’s top stories this week

A [FiveThirtyEight]( email [Popular This Week] Sunday, January 1, 2023 [1. The Numbers That Defined 2022]( [22-NUMBERS-DEFINED-roundup-4×3]( What a year 2022 has been. There was so … much … news. We saw record-high inflation, war in Ukraine, a landmark Supreme Court session, continuing effects of the pandemic, the Winter Olympics, the death of Queen Elizabeth II, the World Cup and, of course, the midterms. In typical FiveThirtyEight fashion, we’ve been reflecting on 2022 the way we do best: through numbers. Here, seven of our reporters share some of the most important stats of the year, highlighting big political decisions, feelings of the electorate and hints at what’s to come in 2023. [Read more]( [2. How 2022 Was A Win For Democracy]( [2022-DEMOCRACY-4×3]( A few weeks before the midterms, I attended an election-denying group’s Zoom meeting. There had been alarming reports of a massive, well-funded campaign to place election deniers in voting centers that could cause havoc on Election Day. I wanted to know exactly what these groups were telling these volunteers, so I found one in Pennsylvania and quietly attended an open session. What I heard that night surprised me. The training session provided would-be poll watchers with accurate, useful information about the responsibilities and limits of their role. It was more bureaucratic than baleful. And the threat of an army of conspiracy-minded meddlers interfering in the voting process never materialized: There were few reports of disruptions on Election Day and no widespread internal efforts to hinder the voting or counting process. [Read more]( [3. What I Got Wrong In 2022]( [2022-GOT-WRONG-4×3]( Here’s a prediction that 100 percent, absolutely, positively will come true: I will get something wrong in 2023. Here at FiveThirtyEight, we make a lot of predictions every year; some of them work out, but we can’t get every single one right. [Read more]( [4. The Best Teams Of 2022 Weren’t Always Champions]( [Georgia quarterback Stetson Bennett]( Year’s end is always a cause for reflection, a moment to look back at all the good and bad that happened over the preceding 12 months. If you’re playing football for the Georgia Bulldogs, there’s a lot more of the good! If you play for the Houston Texans, maybe less so. So, in what has become an annual tradition, it’s time for us to take stock of 2022 in sports by comparing teams across all the different leagues we have Elo ratings for. (Including the World Cup, with ratings courtesy of Eloratings.net.) [Read more]( [5. How Americans Really Feel About Elon Musk]( [A picture of Elon Musk holding a microphone]( Welcome to Pollapalooza, our weekly polling roundup. [Read more]( [6. When Might Other Republicans Challenge Trump For The 2024 Nomination?]( [Former U.S. President Donald Trump]( Last month, former President Donald Trump announced his campaign to return to the White House, more than a year before the start of the 2024 presidential primary process. So far, Trump is the only major Republican candidate who’s launched a bid. While his entry may deter some opponents from running, it’s unlikely Trump will have the GOP primary entirely to himself. [Read more]( [7. Can The Dallas Cowboys Avoid Another Playoff Flop?]( [Dallas Cowboys v Jacksonville Jaguars]( Among die-hard NFL fans, there are really only two ways to feel about the Dallas Cowboys: Either you love them or you hate them. And around this time of year, as we get into the final stretch of the season, both of those sides are itching to be right about how and when the season will come to an end for “America’s Team.” [Read more]( [8. These 5 Voters Of Color Don’t Want Biden vs. Trump In 2024]( [VOICES-OF-COLOR-1221-4×3]( Welcome to Voices Of Color, a column that explores what’s on the minds of voters of color in this year’s midterm elections. Too often, media coverage focuses on the political preferences of white people with euphemisms like “suburban women” or “middle class.” But in this column, we want to know what makes voters of color tick. [Read more]( [9. The Teams That Won, Lost And Confused Us This MLB Offseason]( [Boston Red Sox v New York Yankees]( UPDATE (Dec. 21, 2022, 9:16 a.m.): As it turned out, the Mets were even bigger winners than we thought. In addition to all of the moves detailed below, it was reported early Wednesday morning that Carlos Correa would not be heading to the San Francisco Giants after all, instead signing with the New York Mets on a 12-year, $315 million contract. [Read more]( [10. 33 Cool Charts We Made In 2022]( [2022-BEST-CHARTS_4x3]( In 2022, FiveThirtyEight’s visual journalists covered the midterm elections, the end of Roe v. Wade and sports stories ranging from the World Cup to changes in Major League Baseball’s pitch timing rules. Here are some of the most interesting — and weird and colorful and complicated — charts we made in the last 12 months. [Read more]( --------------------------------------------------------------- Weekly Listen [Play]( [Politics Podcast: The Politics Of Prosecuting Trump]( [FiveThirtyEight] [View in browser]( [ABC News]( [Unsubscribe]( Our mailing address: FiveThirtyEight, 47 West 66th Street, New York, NY 10023.