Despite not appearing on any Election Day ballots, one of the biggest losers of the 2024 election cycle was “Saturday evening live“.

The NBC sketch comedy show has long been at the center of the cultural zeitgeist, satirizing the news of the day and poking fun at the most powerful politicians while also serving as a launching pad for the careers of comedians from foreground. But its audience has taken a hit this year, especially compared to the 2016 and 2020 elections.

Saturday’s post-election show of “SNL” averaged just 4.4 million total viewers, losing more than half of the 9.2 million viewers its post-election show received in 2020 , according to data from Nielsen Research. This is the least watched episode so far this season.

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“SNL” lost 25% of its audience during the 2024 election campaign compared to 2020. (NBC/Saturday Night Live)

In the weeks leading up to the 2024 election, “SNL” averaged 5.4 million viewers, losing 25% of its audience before the 2020 election and nearly a third of its audience compared to 2016.

The Peacock network has relied heavily on stunts this election cycle with “SNL” alums Maya Rudolph and Dana Carvey playing Vice President Kamala Harris and President Biden, respectively, with comedian Jim Gaffigan playing the candidate. Harris’ running mate Tim Walz and “SNL” alum Andy Samberg playing second. Mr. Doug Emhoff.

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Regular cast members James Austin Johnson and Bowen Yang played President-elect Donald Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance, respectively.

Popular comedian Shane Gillis would have refused an offer from “SNL” executive producer Lorne Michaels to play Trump this season after he used his Trump identity when he hosted the show earlier this year. Gillis was hired, then fired by “SNL” in 2019 as a featured actor after progressive critics seized on old jokes.

“SNL” cast members Bowen Yang and James Austin Johnson played Vice President-elect JD Vance and President-elect Donald Trump on the show this year. (NBC/Contributor)

The most-watched episode of the season so far came on the Saturday before Election Day, when Harris made a surprise outdoor appearance alongside Rudolph, which attracted 6.6 million viewers.

Trump himself has not appeared on “SNL” since he hosted the show in November 2015 during his first presidential campaign. This earned me a huge 9.3 million viewers at the time.

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“SNL” has spent much of the last eight years bashing the current president-elect. During the 2024 post-election cold open skit, the “SNL” cast offered him a message, jokingly insisting that they were “with (him) from the beginning.”

“We never wavered in our support, even when others doubted you,” Yang said.

The “SNL” post-election episode only reached 4.4 million viewers, less than half of its 2020 post-election episode. (NBC/SNL)

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During Trump’s first term, the president was played by Alec Baldwin. And during the first two years of the Biden presidency, “SNL” spent more time usurp the former president than the current one.

Some of its actors would have sobbed about Hillary Clinton’s defeat in 2016. In his first cold open after his defeat, Clinton portrayer Kate McKinnon seriously performed “Hallelujah” on the piano and tearfully told the audience that he wouldn’t should not give up.