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An open letter to Trump voters

An open letter to Trump voters

Trump's Desecration of the Flag

Trump's Desecration of the Flag

Bruce Springsteen Launches Protest Tour as Warning for American Democracy

Bruce Springsteen Launches Protest Tour as Warning for American Democracy

A close up of American coins.

Congress Bill Spotlight: Banning Dollar Coin Depicting Trump

Just the Facts: Where the Iran War Really Stands Now

Just the Facts: Where the Iran War Really Stands Now

Voter machine companies working with DHS to combat hackers

Voter machine companies working with DHS to combat hackers
Joe Raedle/Getty Images
The Fulcrum
By The FulcrumSep 06, 2019
The Fulcrum
The Fulcrum staff.
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Makers of voting machines and other election equipment have given the government under-the-covers access to their products, hoping federal experts can find the potential vulnerabilities before hackers can exploit them next year.

Jeanette Manfra, a top Homeland Security Department cybersecurity official, made the revelation at an Intelligence and National Security Summit in suburban Washington on Thursday. Afterward, she told Bloomberg that the manufacturers are cooperating voluntarily, representing a breakthrough for the government.

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A person holding the U.S. flag, kneeling by a vigil.
Rule of Law

Should I Stay or Should I Go? When To Cut and Run On America

America Cannot Function without Experts
Ethics & Leadership

America Cannot Function without Experts

Protestors standing in front of government military tanks.
Democracy

Changing Iran: With Help from Political Geographers on the Ground

Michigan, Romulus Challenge Federal Plan for ICE Detention Center in Ongoing Legal Fight
Rule of Law

Michigan, Romulus Challenge Federal Plan for ICE Detention Center in Ongoing Legal Fight

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A sign that reads, "Voter Registration," hanging from the cieling, pointing to an office with the words, "Voter registration," above its doorway.

The voter registration office at the Nueces County Courthouse in Corpus Christi, Texas on Sept. 11, 2024. Voting rights groups are challenging the state's use of a federal database to check the citizenship status of people on the state's voter roll.

Gabriel Cárdenas for Votebeat

Voting Rights Groups Challenge Texas’ Removal of Potential Noncitizens From the Voter Roll

What happened?

Voting rights groups are suing the Texas Secretary of State’s Office and some county election officials to prevent the removal of voters from the state’s voter roll based on use of a federal database to verify citizenship. They also claim the state failed to crosscheck its own records for proof of citizenship it already possessed before seeking to remove voters.

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People at voting booths, casing their votes in front of a mural depicting the American flag, a bald eagle flying, and children holding hands in the foreground.

Virginia voters cast their ballots at Robius Elementary School November 4, 2025 in Midlothian, Virginia.

Getty Images, Win McNamee

Fixing Broken Systems: America’s Path Beyond Polarization

"A bad system will beat a good person every time" is a famous quote by Dr. W. Edwards Deming, the American statistician most often credited with the Japanese economic miracle after WWII. Even talented, hardworking people cannot overcome a flawed, dysfunctional, or unfair system, making system improvement more crucial than solely blaming individuals for failures.

Fixing “bad systems” is viewed by political scientists and reform organizations as the primary path to reducing America’s political dysfunction. Current systemic structures often create "misaligned incentives" that reward extreme partisanship and obstruction rather than governance. The most prominent electoral system reforms proposed by experts include:

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Voters lining up to vote.

Voters line up at the Oak Lawn Branch Library voting center on Primary Election Day in Dallas on March 3, 2026. Republicans' decision to hold a split primary from the Democrats and to eliminate countywide voting forced Dallas County voters to cast ballots at assigned neighborhood precincts, leading to confusion. Republicans have now decided to use countywide polling locations for the May 26 runoff election.

Shelby Tauber for The Texas Tribune

Dallas County GOP Will Agree To Use Countywide Voting Sites for May 26 Runoff Election

Dallas County Republicans will agree to allow voters to cast ballots at countywide voting sites for the May 26 runoff election after a switch to precinct-based voting sites caused chaos, the county party chair said Tuesday.

Dallas County Republican Chairman Allen West supported the use of precinct-based sites earlier this month, but said using precincts again for the runoff would expose the county party to “increased risk and voter confusion” because the county is planning to use countywide sites for upcoming municipal elections and early voting.

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People at voting booths.

A clear breakdown of voter ID laws under the Constitution, federal statutes, and court rulings—plus analysis of new Trump administration proposals to impose nationwide voter identification requirements.

Getty Images, LPETTET

Just the Facts: Voter ID, States’ Powers, and Federal Limits

The Fulcrum approaches news stories with an open mind and skepticism, presenting our readers with a broad spectrum of viewpoints through diligent research and critical thinking. As best we can, remove personal bias from our reporting and seek a variety of perspectives in both our news gathering and selection of opinion pieces. However, before our readers can analyze varying viewpoints, they must have the facts.


Few issues generate more heat and are less understood than voter ID.

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