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OSCE report on U.S. election notes long list of needed improvements

Earlier this week, Election Dissection went into detail about the Carter Center's work on the U.S. election. Now we note that the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe has issued its interim report card on America's 2020 vote. The overall grade: needs to improve.


The OSCE, which is known for its work helping countries to build democratic institutions, has observed U.S. elections going back to 2002. It has often noted flaws in the way we vote, but this year the organization is sounding many alarms familiar to pro-democracy groups in the United States.

The OSCE says ongoing litigation about voting rules may mean some voters will be disenfranchised. It notes that COVID relief funds given to the Election Assistance Commission won't be enough to offset added costs of the pandemic. It notes that restrictions like showing an ID will have a disproportionate impact on minority voters. It notes that the media landscape is "highly polarized," and that coverage of the presidential race drowns out attention to state and local campaigns. And it notes that social media companies have only begun to tackle disinformation.

The group examines some uniquely American problems, like the fact that 4.6 million citizens residing in Washington, D.C., and other territories can't vote for members of Congress. And 5.2 million people with criminal convictions can't vote at all. Also that campaign finance is largely unregulated, and that as far as political speech is concerned, corporations and labor unions are legally the same as individual people.

But the biggest worry of all is President Trump's constant flogging of unfounded rumors of fraud, according to the OSCE. Experts interviewed by the organization "have expressed grave concerns about the risk of legitimacy of the elections being questioned due to the incumbent president's repeated allegations of a fraudulent election process," the report states.

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Carolyn Lukensmeyer Turns 80: A Life of Commitment to “Of, By, and for the People”

Carolyn Lukensmeyer.

The National Institute for Civil Discourse and New Voice Strategies

Carolyn Lukensmeyer Turns 80: A Life of Commitment to “Of, By, and for the People”

I’ve known Dr. Carolyn Lukensmeyer for over a decade, first meeting her about a decade ago. Dr. Lukensmeyer is a nationally renowned expert in deliberative democracy, a former executive director emerita of the National Institute for Civil Discourse, and a member of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences’ Commission on the Practice of Democratic Citizenship.

On the weekend of her 80th birthday, former colleagues, clients, and friends offered a look at Dr. Lukensmeyer’s extraordinary commitment to “of, by, and for the peoples,” from her earlier days in Iowa and Ohio to the present day.

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Public Health: Ban First, Study Later? The Growing Assault on Fluoridated Water

Someone getting tap water.

Getty Images, urbazon

Public Health: Ban First, Study Later? The Growing Assault on Fluoridated Water

On May 15, Florida became the second state in the nation to ban fluoride from public drinking water. The bill, signed by Governor Ron DeSantis, is set to go into effect on July 1. Utah’s Governor Spencer Cox enacted a similar ban that went into effect this May. Five other states—Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Nebraska, and South Carolina—have introduced bills that aim to ban fluoride in public drinking water.

Fluoride is a mineral that, in small quantities, has proven to be effective against tooth decay, caused by bacteria that form in the mouth when we eat or drink. The American Academy of Pediatrics states on its website that studies have shown water fluoridation, an intentional treatment process of public drinking water, reduces tooth decay by about 25% in children and adults alike.

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POLL: Americans Wary About The President Taking Unconventional Actions
APM Research Lab

POLL: Americans Wary About The President Taking Unconventional Actions

Americans show a strong preference for their elected executives — governors as well as the president — to achieve their political goals through conventional, sometimes slow, procedures, according to the McCourtney Institute for Democracy’s latest Mood of the Nation Poll.

Results showed marked partisan differences. For example, 26% of all survey respondents rated a presidential action of firing all recently hired federal employees as “very appropriate,” including only four percent of Democrats and just over half of Republicans.

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The U.S. Is Rushing To Make AI Deals With Gulf Countries, But Who Will Help Keep Children Safe?

A child's hand holding an adult's hand.

Getty Images, LaylaBird

The U.S. Is Rushing To Make AI Deals With Gulf Countries, But Who Will Help Keep Children Safe?

As the United States deepens its investments in artificial intelligence (AI) partnerships abroad, it is moving fast — signing deals, building labs, and exporting tools. Recently, President Donald Trump announced sweeping AI collaborations with Gulf countries like Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. These agreements, worth billions, are being hailed as historic moments for digital diplomacy and technological leadership.

But amid the headlines and handshakes, I keep asking the same question: where is child protection in all of this?

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