“Defending our democracy” is one of those political catchphrases that voices on the Left, from the Washington Post to nonprofits like the Southern Poverty Law Center, banter about regularly. But amid the unending suggestions that “modern-day populism” or whatever President Trump is doing today threaten the American project, a more serious problem lurks: Americans of all political stripes are losing faith in the elections that give form to our democratic republic.
Liberal Americans point to supposedly unfair redistricting and the prospect that immigration officers or other Trump-related threats will undercut turnout. Conservatives cite fraud and nefarious counting tactics, particularly in blue cities. Overall, fully one-third of Americans believe that voter fraud is “the single biggest threat to keeping elections safe and accurate,” according to a PBS/Marist poll released in March. The takeaway is clear: Americans no longer believe that, as Abraham Lincoln put it, “elections belong to the people.”
Regardless of how much fraud or abuse can be proven, the truth is that the mere appearance of foul play constitutes a national crisis, one that could prove disastrous if not remedied. Luckily, there’s a simple—and historically grounded—answer to this problem: restoring Election Day to its original understanding.
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