A few IJN readers raised some questions last week on our “Readers Speak” page. Did odd things happen during the Nov. 3 election? Were there unusual patterns?
These are points worth discussing. To ignore them does not serve our election process. The cornerstone of any functioning democracy is the integrity of its elections and the peaceful transition of power. As Americans, we need to trust our election process; otherwise the system will break down.
But there are two salient points: Is there strong evidence of misconduct? And, if it is proved that fraud took place, would it affect the outcome of the election?
To the first: any valid suspicions of fraud should be investigated and, if found, remediated. To date, the courts, including the Supreme Court, do not believe such evidence exists.
It wouldn’t be a shock that in a year when so many states turned to mail-in voting at the last minute, there would be glitches.
To me, that’s different from fraud, which implies malfeasance. That’s a strong accusation and must be backed up by solid proof.
To the second point: Even if glitches or fraud did occur, if they would not change the election’s outcome, then concession cannot be withheld and the election cannot be contested. That doesn’t mean the process shouldn’t be investigated and improved where necessary. But it does mean that the conversation should move past “Stop the Steal.”
I keep thinking back to a book I recently read, 1969, by Rob Kirkpatrick. While the book is an exploration of the year, it opens in the year that started the decade off: 1960. I was shocked when the author matter-of-factly stated that the 1960 election was stolen. I knew it was a close race, but I never knew about Texas and Chicago, about Johnson and Daley’s election interference to secure Kennedy the presidency.
Why did Nixon concede? Here was a pretty cut-and-dried case for contesting an election. How ironic is it that Nixon, perhaps the most divisive US president ever, and despite seriously considering contesting the election, realized that ultimately it would be the country that would suffer. He put America first. Trump, who always says “America first,” and his supporters should do the same.
Shana Goldberg may be reached at shana@ijn.com
Copyright © 2020 by the Intermountain Jewish News
