IT IS BEING CALLED A ‘SLOW MOVING COUP’
Weeks before the Capitol attack, many politicians and bureaucrats stood against Trump’s attempt to overturn the 2020 elections. All is well, but since then Trump’s allies are building a clear path for him the next time.
External experts on democracy have been warning that the US is currently witnessing a “slow-motion insurrection”, however, this time they have a much better shot at succeeding. These warnings aren’t baseless since there are various pieces of evidence throughout states.Β
Several candidates who denied Trump’s loss are running for office that could play a key role in the next elections. In Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, Republican-controlled parliament is backing up open-ended reviews of the 2020 elections. These are open efforts to fuel confusion, anger, and misinformation about 2020 results. They know that this will have a huge impact on the next election. And from the looks of it, they aren’t backing out, but are becoming more organized and aligned. Sixteen GOP governors have signed laws that make it difficult to vote. NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll showed that two-thirds of the Republicans disbelieve that Joe Biden was legally elected as President.
American democracy has been going down the hill since it was realized and let’s not forget, both parties are tweaking the laws in their favor. There were millions of Americans, Black people, women, Native Americans who were excluded from the process.
At a recent news conference in Wisconsin, Kathleen Bernier, a GOP state senator, and former elections clerk criticized her party’s efforts to seize control of the elections. However, Bernier’s views are not welcomed by the majority of the Republicans who control the state legislature in Wisconsin. Earlier in 2021, Wisconsin Republicans ordered their Legislative Audit Bureau to review the 2020 election. And yes, there was no major fraud discovered, and the same conclusion was reached for an investigation by the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty.
Still, the Republicans won’t budge. They believe something went wrong, especially pointing out how the nonpartisan Wisconsin Elections Commission (created by GOP-led legislature and then Republican governor created 8 years ago to run state elections), changed guidance for local election officers to make voting easier during the pandemic. GOP Sen. Alberta Darling, representing the conservative suburbs north of Milwaukee said, “We feel we need to get this straight for people to believe we have integrity. Weβre not just trying to change the election with Trump. Weβre trying to dig into the next election and change irregularities.β
Republicans are altering the election methods in other states. In Georgia, the GOP governor signed an election bill this year giving the Republican-controlled General Assembly authority over the state board of elections. The law has also passed measures allowing officials to remove Democrats from election boards in six other counties.
In October, the Detroit News reported that Republicans had replaced their members on boards of canvassers in 8 of Michigan’s 11 most crowded counties. Michigan officials said that if the board of canvassers don’t certify an election then they can be sued.
In Pennsylvania, Republican senate Sen. Doug Mastriano, the organizer of buses for Trump’s supporters for his rally on Jan 6, has said that he will be running for governor. Former news anchor, Kari Lake, who repeated Trump’s falsehoods is running to succeed Republican Gov. Doug Ducey. Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer has reportedly started a political committee to provide financial support to Republicans who tell the truth about the election. And also, Trump’s supporters are signing up for local election jobs in droves. One of the Jan 6. rioters also became an election judge overseeing voting in rural parts of Lancaster County.
Trump’s main aim is to replace officials who defied him, replacing them with his allies. Mark Brewer, an election lawyer and former chair of the Michigan Democratic Party said, “Theyβre laying the groundwork for a slow-motion insurrection.” And this is just the beginning.