Clancy is co-founder of Citizen Connect and a board member of the Bridge Alliance Education Fund. Citizen Connect is an initiative of the Bridge Alliance Education Fund, which also operates The Fulcrum.
I’m not here to debate whether the 2020 presidential election involved massive voter fraud that made Joe Biden’s victory possible. There has been extensive research, analysis and court cases related to that topic and nothing I say now will change your mind one way or the other. Nothing will change the fact that tens of millions of Americans believe Biden was not legitimately elected president.
So let’s assume for the sake of argument that there actually was game-changing election fraud that unjustly put Biden in the White House. If that was the case, what are the odds that Donald Trump would be “allowed” to win this time? If that level of voter fraud is set to happen again, isn’t voting just a waste of time?
Following is an overview of what has and hasn’t changed since 2020 — and why if massive election fraud happened last time it would be even more likely to happen this time.
- Democrats now control the White House. If Trump couldn’t stop massive fraud in 2020 while he was in the White House, doesn’t having Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris running the executive branch make it easier to pull off now? If the party out of power could get away scot-free after stealing the last election against a strong incumbent who was acutely aware of the risks of fraud, what are the chances of stopping it this time?
- Will election reforms put in place since 2020 stop another steal? Put another way, have Republicans enacted enough changes to the voting process at the national and state level to address the scale and scope of Biden’s alleged voter fraud? Short answer: They haven’t. While there have been election process changes in many states, none of them could disrupt such a widespread and meticulously executed corruption scheme. At the federal level Republicans have done almost nothing — and this in the face of what would be the greatest election crime in American history.
- Have the people behind the alleged 2020 fraud faced justice? Not at all. In fact not one person behind the suspected 2020 fraud has been charged, much less convicted. Given their incredible success last time, why would they hesitate in the slightest to do it again? Where have Republican district attorneys and judges been on this issue? Passive overall with some Trump-appointed judges even dismissing election crime allegations.
- What have Republican leaders done? Given the level of alleged fraud, you’d think the Republican Party would have spoken as one to make sure this never happened again. And yet not only haven’t they come together to decry these unprecedented crimes and demand reform — many leading Republicans are claiming that Biden won legitimately in 2020 and that our election process is sound.
- Are election officials ready to stop fraud this time? Many of the election officials most committed to addressing supposed fraud in 2020 lost their election bids. In addition, Democrats now hold more leadership offices around the country including those with election oversight responsibilities. None of this suggests that our election system would be more prepared to take on another 2020-style election conspiracy.
The fact is, Democrats are in a much stronger position overall in 2024 to “fix” the election. If Democrats actually got away with stealing the election last time, why on earth wouldn’t they do it again? The stakes are even higher this time because Trump has made it crystal clear that he’s committed to aggressively rooting out and prosecuting election fraud. If these incredibly skillful criminal forces were driven by a desire to win in 2020, this time they will try even harder to stay out of jail.
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Let me be crystal clear: I would like every American citizen to vote with confidence whether they are a Republican, Democrat or independent. It is a core duty, honor and blessing of citizenship. However, if you really believe the presidential election was stolen in 2020 what makes you think your vote will matter this time? If rigging it proved so easy and seamless before, it should be even easier in 2024.
Voting makes sense if and only if you have faith that America’s election process is essentially sound. Not perfect — that’s impossible — but able to accurately reflect the will of the people. So don’t take anyone else’s word for it — do your own research and determine your level of confidence in our election system. If you think it’s fundamentally sound, definitely vote. But if you decide to cast a ballot you should also commit to respecting the outcome and supporting the American tradition of free, fair and safe elections.
Whether you chose to vote this year, undermining American democracy or resorting to violence is never justified. Our election system can always be improved, but that must be done peacefully and with respect for the rule of law.
