Written by Marcin Grajewski,

© Jon Anders Wiken / Adobe Stock

Joseph Biden, a former US Vice-President and long-time Senator with a strong interest in foreign affairs, won the US Presidential election for the Democrats, defeating the incumbent Republican President, Donald Trump. Over the past four years, Trump shook the established rules-based international order, notably by withdrawing US funding from various multilateral organisations and pulling out of various international agreements, by renegotiating trade deals, imposing provocative customs duties, and progressively reducing America’s foreign military presence. Although Trump has not yet conceded defeat, his allegations of election fraud and related attempts at litigation are widely seen as frivolous. Once Biden becomes President, the US is expected to seek to strengthen the Transatlantic alliance and revive the multilateral system, without necessarily being able to pursue any significant liberalisation of trade, given domestic political pressures and the ambiguous situation in the US Congress.

This note offers links to recent commentaries, studies and reports from major international think tanks on issues related to US elections and President Biden’s expected policies in a number of areas.

Biden’s win creates a new global trade challenge: Delivering results
European Centre for International Political Economy, November 2020

Trump spaltet, Biden versöhnt? wer so denkt, hat die usa nicht verstanden
Deutsche Gesellschaft für Auswärtige Politik, November 2020

What will President Biden’s United States look like to the rest of the world?
European Council on Foreign Relations, November 2020

Views from the capitals: What Biden’s victory means for Europe
European Council on Foreign Relations, November 2020

Western democracies united
European Council on Foreign Relations, November 2020

Why populism in Europe will survive Trump’s defeat
European Council on Foreign Relations, November 2020

Course correction in US-Iranian relations: A road map for the Biden administration
European Council on Foreign Relations, November 2020

What we have lost: Trump, Biden, and the meaning of transatlantic relations
European Council on Foreign Relations, November 2020

Anxious allies: European sovereignty after the US election
European Council on Foreign Relations, November 2020

With no landslide win for Biden, Beijing benefits
European Council on Foreign Relations, November 2020`

What are the laws governing military force during U.S. elections?
Council on Foreign Relations, October 2020

President-Elect Biden on foreign policy
Council on Foreign Relations, November 2020

One America, two nations
Council on Foreign Relations, November 2020

Postelection forecast: More polarization ahead
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, November 2020

A new direction?
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, November 2020

America under Biden won’t go soft on China
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, November 2020

Joe Biden’s election will mainly affect citizens in the Middle East and North Africa
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, November 2020

Europe’s high expectations for a U.S. President Joe Biden
Carnegie Europe, November 2020

Is the U.S. election a make or break for America?
Carnegie Europe, November 2020

Picking up the pieces: America after the 2020 election
Bertelsmann Stiftung, November 2020

L’élection de Biden-Harris: Un répit en vue de quoi?
Institut français des relations internationales, November 2020

Top 5 financial regulatory priorities for the Biden administration
Brookings Institution, November 2020

Recalibrating America’s role in the world under a Biden presidency
Brookings Institution, November 2020

A fitting legacy for George Floyd: Vice President Kamala Harris
Brookings Institution, November 2020

It’s not just Trump and Biden: State and local ballot measures could have a big impact on community recovery
Brookings Institution, October 2020

Whoever wins the US elections will need to save democratic capitalism through ‘new Bretton Woods’
Atlantic Council, October 2020

Joe Biden just won the presidency: What does that mean for America’s role in the world?
Atlantic Council, November 2020

Biden’s victory provides an ‘inflection point’ for American democracy
Atlantic Council, November 2020

How a President-elect Biden will confront climate change
Atlantic Council, November 2020

Europe and Biden’s America: Making European autonomy and a revamped transatlantic bond two sides of the same coin
Instituto Affari Internazionali, November 2020

Top 10 priorities for President Biden to tackle the climate crisis
World Recourses Institute, November 2020

After a hard election, the real work begins
Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, November 2020

The Biden administration must strongly advocate for working people
Aspen Institute, November 2020

In search of Biden doctrine
Foreign Policy Research Institute, November 2020

U.S. election 2020: America’s restlessness is a mark of its unique strength
Hudson Institute, November 2020

Americans choose their president: Europe must live with the consequences
Centre for European Reform, November 2020

No, State Legislatures aren’t going to override the popular vote on presidential electors
Cato, November 2020

United States: Leaders must put democracy above partisan interests
Freedom House, November 2020

How are countries reporting on the U.S. election?
German Marshall Fund, November 2020

U.S. Midterm elections: What the results mean
Chatham House, November 2020

US foreign policy priorities
Chatham House, October 2020

U.S.: Voters choose Biden as President
Human Right Watch, November 2020

Stalemate 2020
American Enterprise Institute, November 2020

What would a Biden presidency mean for US-EU trade relations?
Centre for European Reform, October 2020

Turning the tide: How to rescue transatlantic relations
EU Institute for Security Studies, October 2020

The first 100 days: Toward a more sustainable and values-based national security approach
Center for American Progress, October 2020

Stop saying Biden is ‘A lot like Trump’ on China
National Bureau on Economic Research, October 2020


Read this briefing on ‘U.S. Presidential election‘ in the Think Tank pages of the European Parliament.