Risk analysis, as practiced in engineering, is a political endeavor. Engineering advancements are driven by the need to solve societal problems with technology and are beholden to technical and non-technical requirements. The political scope of engineering has been well-studied; here, we argue that risk, as a subset of engineering, includes similar political constructs. Because of this, the concept of risk extends well beyond quantifiable hazards and event probabilities. Recognizing the political nature of risk enables the inclusion of non-scientific and non-quantifiable characteristics alongside the traditional elements of technical risk analysis. This shift in perspective can produce risk assessments that are more capable of handling societal and existential risk scenarios, more responsive to risk as perceived by stakeholders, and reinforce the inherently unquantifiable social duties of engineers and scientists. This paper reviews the political and social realities of risk in an engineering context; we argue for the broader inclusion of extra-scientific values in risk assessments and look to the assessment of existential risks as a principal application for this broadened paradigm of risk assessment.