Below is my Hill column on the current litigation controversies around the country. We are still watching litigation playing out just a day before the election. At the same time, we have some figures like Rep. Jamie Raskin (D., Md.) reserving any recognition of a victory unless they are satisfied with the integrity of the election. While I remain hopeful that the courts have gotten a head start on addressing many issues, there is a virtual army of lawyers in place from both major parties waiting for a green light to deploy. We just had a new filing in Georgia over handing in mail ballots and the Supreme Court has ruled against a RNC challenge with a statement that essentially said “don’t sweat the small stuff” when only a tiny number of ballots are impacted.
“Something wicked this way comes.” Those words from William Shakespeare’s “Macbeth” capture a certain dread that takes hold of some of us tasked with covering the legal elements of the presidential election.
Just as Halloween ended, things in the days leading into Election Day have begun to get…well, spooky. Call it election jitters, but some of us have been here before.
More than 200 cases have been filed around the country before the election this year. In the last week, worrisome elements have begun to pop up in various swing states.
Over the last couple of decades, I have covered presidential elections for three networks (as I will do for Fox News in this election). The lead-up to elections always includes a flurry of lawsuits. As the voting margin shrinks between the parties, the number of lawyers increases.
Some lawsuits are important efforts to make changes to remove barriers for voters or the counting of early balloting. For example, on Friday an emergency lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union secured an order for election officials in Cobb County, Ga., to overnight mail ballots to roughly 3,000 citizens and to guarantee that they be counted after a snafu by election officials. Other lawsuits are what I call “placeholders,” where campaigns establish areas of concern to be able to reference later in any specific challenges on or after Election Day.
The Supreme Court has already intervened to stop an effort by the Biden-Harris administration to force Virginia to put people back on the voting rolls who had identified themselves as non-citizens. It is a crime for non-citizens to vote. Although Virginia allows any mistaken information to be corrected (and also allows for challenged voters to file provisional ballots), lower courts ordered Virginia to enable people to vote who had said they were not citizens.
Critics charge that the case is the continuation of the administration’s unrelenting attacks on voter identification and proof of citizenship laws, even though 84 percent of Americans support such laws. In California, Governor Gavin Newsom and Democratic legislators actually made it a crime for any poll worker to ask voters for identification.
Some of these early challenges are welcomed, in the sense that we still have time to work out problems. Courts are notoriously reluctant to intervene after an election with the limited time before the certification of votes. They often refuse challengers access to vital election board information or bar cases as speculative or litigants as lacking in standing. This fuels the public’s distrust of the integrity of the election.
Some challenges potentially involve a high number of votes in swing states. For example, in North Carolina, the Republican National Committee is suing the North Carolina State Board of Elections over 225,000 people who may not have been appropriately registered because that state failed to require a driver’s license or partial Social Security number.
In Arizona, a judge had to order Democratic Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes to release the names of roughly 218,000 voters who may have been allowed to register without the proof of citizenship required by state law.
There is also a growing concern over possible systemic voting registration violations in multiple districts in Pennsylvania. Initially, 2,500 forms were marked as suspicious for possible false names, duplicative handwriting or unverifiable or incorrect identifying information. Lancaster County District Attorney Heather Adams and her team found that about 60 percent of the 2,500 forms were potentially illegitimate. Monroe County District Attorney Mike Mancuso linked the registrations to “Field and Media Corps,” a subsidiary of Fieldcorps, an Arizona-based organization.
Field and Media Corps appears to have taken down its website, but it previously identified itself as a subsidiary of FieldCorps. It described itself as “connecting campaigns and projects with communities of color across the state. Our clients benefit from our social activism and coalition leadership experience gained through decades of leading campaigns, highlighting social inequalities, and developing BIPOC coalition building.”
FieldCorps has reportedly been working for the Harris-Walz campaign, the Mark Kelly campaign in Arizona and other Democratic campaigns. Efforts to reach FieldCorps for comment have been unsuccessful.
The concern is that companies like FieldCorps could be replicating errors across districts and states in the rush to register new voters. If these are knowing falsifications, it could constitute a federal crime.
We also have the same controversies arising in this election about changes to voting laws just before the election. In 2020, many voters were opposed to courts in states like Pennsylvania issuing last-minute changes. Many assumed that these laws had been finally worked out to guarantee the criteria for consideration of mail-in ballots and other forms of voting.
However, with less than two weeks to go, a divided Pennsylvania Supreme Court voted 4-3 to order a significant change in election rules. The Election Code in the state is a model of clarity — it says that a provisional ballot “shall not be counted if the elector’s [mail] ballot is received in a timely manner by a county board of elections.” However, the court ruled that provisional ballots must be counted even if an individual has already sent in a mail ballot rejected for violating a mandatory rule, such as failure to place the ballot in a secrecy envelope or to date or sign the envelope. Late Friday night, the Supreme Court declined to block the counting of the provisional ballots.
However, on Friday, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court did hold the line on another major change of the state election laws ordered by a lower court. The court stayed a decision that it is unconstitutional to reject mail ballots without handwritten dates on the return envelopes. The stay means that the law will remain in effect for the election. Justice Kevin Doughtery (joined by Chief Justice Debra Todd) wrote a reassuring concurrence for many of us having to follow these cases: “‘This Court will neither impose nor countenance substantial alterations to existing laws and procedures during the pendency of an ongoing election.’ We said those carefully chosen words only weeks ago. Yet they apparently were not heard in the Commonwealth Court, the very court where the bulk of election litigation unfolds.”
In what may be the closest election in history, late changes to election laws are inflammatory for an already suspicious electorate. According to the Gallup polling, only 63 percent are “very (34 percent) or somewhat confident (29 percent) that votes in the upcoming midterm elections will be accurately cast and counted.” That is near a record low, and there is a 45 percentage point gap separating Republicans (40 percent) and Democrats (85 percent) in their confidence in election integrity.
To my astonishment, voting officials are still committing basic errors. In Bucks County, Pa., voters were turned away in their attempt to apply in person for mail-in ballots. Some were told that there were computer or staffing problems. A court then ordered additional days to request ballots, so that matter at least is resolved. Yet such glitches are concerning. This is not rocket science. Rocket science is Elon Musk catching a massive booster rocket on what looked like a giant barbeque fork. Getting the staff and computers in place in a historic election should not be a great challenge.
Given the emotions and closeness of this election, any such irregularities will only confirm the worst expectations of some voters. They are often neither sinister nor particularly suspicious. With tens of millions voting, there are going to be problems. Election officials can help reduce the suspicions by being more forthcoming in sharing information. In past years, officials have acted reflectively to oppose any disclosures while seeking the dismissal of cases. That largely succeeded legally but proved costly politically. It left many allegations (including ill-supported theories) unresolved in the minds of many citizens.
It would be far better for the nation to resolve questions before the elections and strive for greater transparency in post-election challenges. That is why, if something wicked this way comes, we can more easily send it along its way.
Jonathan Turley is the Shapiro professor of public interest law at George Washington University and the author of “The Indispensable Right: Free Speech in an Age of Rage.”
TDS – Trump Derangement Syndrome
Is this named after trump and his followers? The current Republican Party Presidential Nominee?
If so, it makes perfect sense. The guy has temper tantrums like a 2 year old. Who would support a person to be President that acts like a Pre K baby? Did you see his free time on NBC the other night? It is worth a watch. His talking points were all fact free made up nonsense. The worst economy in at least 40 years? Worst economic news 2 days ago? Really? What alternate reality infects his brain? Does he have a brain? Can he read news? He is a convicted sexual abuser and he tells women he will protect them. Women have heard that before. And they are not buying it.
Thank goodness trump is supported by a minority of people and will not even come close to being elected. Hopefully TDS will then drift away and disappear as trump himself wastes away in his dementia at his Mary a logo fantasy land.
2 year old temper tantrum ^^^
I see you have no comment about the sexual abuser saying he will protect women. Do you find that a bit odd?
I see you have no comment about the sexual abuser saying he will protect women. Do you find that a bit odd?
The Big Guy who raped his teenage daughter in the shower as well as raping one of his young interns while he was a shower was taken out of the election by the Harris insurrection.
I do find it odd that you so passionately defended and supported him, couldn’t wait to vote for him again… and now you want people to comment on it?
“I see you have no comment about the sexual abuser saying he will protect women”
When did Biden promise to protect women?
“When did Biden promise to protect women?”
Well, there was his executive order to protect “abortion rights”. Forgotten about that?
And don’t forget he changed Chapter Nine to allow Birthing Person trannies like yourself to go hang your junk out in front of little girls in women’s bathrooms
First 100 Days: Biden’s Pledge To Protect Transgender Americans’ Rights
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f0TPxPZgo8E
You just came out and missed all of that in the previous four years??
* Odd? There are places in life that are> a rock and a hard place, the lesser of bad and worst. Considering the dems sit under the banner of complete ruin and genocide, Trump looks like an angel.
TDS?? Look in the mirror…
The guy has temper tantrums like a 2 year old. Who would support a person to be President that acts like a Pre K baby?
The Anonymous who fill these pages with their cowardly daily fits of vicious rage and hate should probably be able to recognize what that looks like. No surprise that their act of self-confession is to channel their guilt on the person that is the focus of their rage and hate.
Thank goodness trump is supported by a minority of people and will not even come close to being elected.
Oh yeah! That’s exactly what all the polling says, while Democrats are fearful of being potentially blown out.
Democrat Liars Anonymous….
Lil 82nd Bow Wow, what were your MOS, Awards, Theater, and Campaign?
Mewling like a kitten, cut like a marshmallow, Airsoft Commando Sniper who never walked a battleground, where did you learn those cool terms and words?
Trump has not been convicted of sexual assault, it was a civil matter and he lost to a partisan stacked Manhattan court. That is not a conviction, if it were OJ Simpson would have served time for murdering his wife and John Goldman.
That’s true, the case was not about protecting the public from an alleged criminal actor, but rather a legal extortion scheme justified by an allusion to it.
ATS
Trump voters came out in 2016 – when they were all told Hillary had a 98% chance of winning.
Trump voters came out in 2020 – When Biden was allegedly 11pts ahead.
Do you really beleive that efforts to demoralize Trump voters in 2024 are going to work ?
Trumps supporters EXPECT that you are going to cheat.
That to win the election they are going to have to win the popular vote by several points.
And they are still coming out to vote.
We have been hearing for 6 months that Democrat voter enthusiasm is at record levels.
I have had story after story claiming that – without evidence.
Now we are starting to see evidence.
Democrat mailin voting is way down.
Democrat early voting is way down.
Early voting is over and Democrats has little or no lead – usually Republicans have millions of votes to catch up on election day.
Further the evidence is that only 9% of republicans who normally vote on election day voted early,
so Republicans have not likely canabalized their vote to get near parity in early voting.
We can still expect Republicans to dominate on election day.
only this year there is little ground that democrats can make up counting early votes.
Regardless, left wing nut efforts to demoralize Trump voters are laughable.
John Say,
I can say, based off my observations driving around town, Trump yard signs are definitely are the majority of signs. And compared to the 2020 election, there are definitely less Democrat yard signs. The one home in 2020 had several Biden/Harris yard signs and one big banner across the front of the house for Biden/Harris. This year it is one Harris/Walz sign. Due to the white and tope coloring of the sign I could barely make it out. Another observation, Harris/Walz yard signs are non-patriotic colors, whereas Trump/Vance signs are some mix of patriotic colors of red, white and blue. I am also seeing many more Trump/Vance flags and someone parked a huge wooden, red, white and blue Trump/Vance sign on a pull behind trailer next to a home with two white, blue and yellow Harris/Walz yard signs. I am definitely seeing more Trump/Vance energy then Harris/Walz.
I see our leftists anonymorons are out in force this morning. We can feel, read and see their desperation. Their lies. Their panicking.
How marvelous!
Vote Trump/Vance!
^Regularly claims to be above reading any Anonymous comments,
yet also knows what they’re all about, and that they’re ‘marvelous’.
Hypocrisy in action. Not the first time, and won’t be the last.
Lawn boy who loves to troll upstate.
Have another sip, drunktard.
do you have an argument ?
Wong.
As I have previously mentioned in the past, sometimes I will read some of the anonymorn comments to get insight into their thinking. Today being the day before the election, I have been taking a sampling of them to see how desperate they have become. Desperate indeed. As we have noted in the past, they come to the good professor’s blog to flood it with either personal attacks on him, or just rant and rave their TDS. Again, we get more insight into their thinking and mentality. Desperation. Panic. Fear. Hate. All common traits of leftist Democrats with sever cases of TDS.
Now, that is truly marvelous!
Granted, this comment board is for nutcase right wing extremists. Any other commenter on here — left, center right — is going to be called “leftists anonymorons.”
“To my astonishment, voting officials are still committing basic errors. In Bucks County, Pa., voters were turned away in their attempt to apply in person for mail-in ballots.” Um no, professor. These are not “errors”. It’s just one step in many in the cabal’s efforts to stifle any challenge to their authority.
* It isn’t possible to have free and fair elections when a population is immoral and virtueless.
End of that system.
👋
Jonathan: One thing is certain. DJT and his supporters in many states are falsely claiming non-citizens are voting in huge numbers. FACT CHECK: Not true. In the 2016 election only about 30 incidents of voting by non-citizens were flagged–and that was in 42 jurisdiction with a total vote 23.5 million votes cast. Georgia just completed an audit of its rolls and found only 20 non-citizens who were registered to vote. The fact is voting by non-citizens is extremely rare and has not determined the outcome of any election.
In one of the cases you mention, Beals v VA Coalition of Immigrant Rights, MAGA Gov. Glenn Youngkin purged the voter rolls of thousands of people he claimed were non-citizens–based on outdated DMV records. The plaintiffs pointed out that many voters don’t correct their DMV records after attaining citizenship. The DOJ entered the case pointing out that the NVRA prohibits the removal of voters during the 90 days before a federal election. Last Wednesday the MAGA majority on the SC ignored both the factual record and the NVRA to permit Youngkin to purge eligible voters from the Virginia rolls. That’s the part you don’t mention in your column.
There is another case you don’t mention. That involves Elon Musk’s little “lottery” scheme to pay people to vote. That’s illegal under both state and federal law. The DA in Philadelphia, Larry Krasner, brought a lawsuit in state court against Musk. Elon tried get the case removed to federal court hoping DJT will be re-elected and have the case dismissed. What happened? On Friday, federal district Judge Gerald Pappert refused Musk’s request to remove the case. On remand the Penn. state court judge has now set today for the first hearing in the case. Musk is going to face accountability for his illegal scheme to buy votes.
Another thing is certain. As in 2020 DJT and his MAGA supporters are filing hundreds of lawsuits claiming massive voter fraud–falsely claiming millions of non-citizens are voting and challenging mail-in votes. As happened in 2020 those efforts will ultimately fail–again!
Dennis, more all over the place nonsense.
The NVRA prohibits “systematically” removing eligable voters within 90 days of an election.
These voters were neither systematically removed nor eligable.
All voters removed were notified individually of their possible removal and given 14 days to prove citizenship,
and can still vote provisionally – though if they are not citizens they will be arrested and likely deported.
Please get the law correct.
The rules of statutory construction require that every word in a law must be given meaning,
There are two words in the NVRA that DOJ has ignored – systemically and eligable.
I would note that other federal law REQUIRES purging ineligable voters from voter rolls
Though that law is rarely followed.
Fact Check – in 2016 – and in most elections, little has been done to verify the citizenship of voters. It is impossible to say how many non-citizens voted in most prior elections.
In a polling by Rassmusen repeatedly since the 2020 election – 38% of those polled who voted in 2020 admit to illegal voting conduct in one way or another.
Have you ever provided a citation of any “fact” you present? I haven’t seen it yet.
Dennis,
Judge Pappert refused Musks request to move the case to federal court BECAUSE Kranser is NOT alleging a violation of federal or state election law.
Krasner is alleging that Musk is violating PA lottery law.
Therefore there is no federal jurisdiction.
If Krasner actually chooses to make an allegation that Musk is violating election law – the case will get removed to federal court.
Further Krasner has NOT filed a criminal complaint – this is a civil suit.
I would note that the ACTUAL lottery run by Musk is for signing a petition supporting the constitution.
To be eligible for the lottery, you must, be registered to vote in one of the swing states and sign the petition.
Given that states really hate competition – it is possible that Musk might be found to have violated PA lottery laws.
But that is not a crime.
There is no allegation at all of election fraud and that is specifically why Judge Pappert refused to move the case to federal court,
There is no federal issue – there is no crime alleged much less a federal crime.
It is possible that by election day, some Philly court may issue a TRO stopping Musks lottery.
Whoopy.
Regardless, I thought left wing nuts WANTED people to register to vote ?
“I WOULD FURTHER NOTE” that John Say continues to make lengthy comments beyond his only area of expertise, that being mammals, squirrels and rabies.
Dennis,
You can be counted on each day to write a long rant alleging all kinds of things,
None of which actually hold up under sunlight.
John Say,
Quite right. I rarely read anything Dennis posts, but I have to understand your take downs and dismantling of his lies, or delusions. Well done!
Giving the leftist the benefit of doubt is disgusting! How many times do we have to catch them cheating, before it becomes obvious, that they are degenerates!?
I think this is setting up the grounds for a law/s requiring voter ID and proof of citizenship. It will be very telling to see who supports such a law/s and who are against them. IIRC, someone from SC posted a comment about how their state passed a law requiring ID. They spelled it out how people could get alternative ID to a drivers license and if they were of low income, they could get it for free.
After this election, we need to make voting integrity one of the top issues going forward. Voter ID, proof of citizenship laws should be introduced at all levels of government or at the federal level.
Cuz an ethical moral man like Trump told you elections are rigged to explain why so many people hate him and vote against him… LOL.
This is what has become of the Republican Party. Sad, criminal, disgusting, How in the world can anyone be part of this disgusting movement.
One of the letters, images of which were shared with Wisconsin Examiner, opens with the line, “We see that you have Democrat signs on your property.” The letter asks, “are you not aware that when you die that you will be held accountable before almighty God for voting for an open border that allows millions of illegal immigrants to freely enter, many of which are felons and evil people that have been doing deadly harm and will continue to do so [?]” The letter goes on to warn that voters will be held accountable by God “for voting for communism to take over America,” ending that “we don’t want anyone going to horrible hell, but you are on a fast path to it.”
Yawn
New Hampshire homeowners receive threatening letters over Trump 2020 lawn signs
“Dear neighbor, you have been identified by our group as being a Trump supporter. Your address has been added to our database as a target when we attack should Trump not concede the election. We recommend that you check your home insurance policy and make that it is current and that it has adequate coverage for fire damage. You have been given ‘Fair Warning.’”
https://www.foxnews.com/us/new-hampshire-trump-2020-threatening-letters-arson
Police investigate threatening letters sent to Trump supporters
The letter read, “Dear neighbor, you have been identified by our group as being a Trump supporter. Your address has been added to our database as a target when we attack should Trump not concede the election. We recommend that you check your home insurance policy and make that it is current and that it has adequate coverage for fire damage. You have been given ‘Fair Warning.’”
https://www.foxnews.com/us/new-hampshire-trump-2020-threatening-letters-arson
https://www.wmur.com/article/police-investigate-threatening-letters-sent-to-trump-supporters/34418916
Based on how incompetent Trump is and how he brazenly lies, I’m not worried. Trump told Rogan he had loads of evidence that 2020 was stolen. Somehow he forgot to give it to his legal team when they sued across various states.
In dismissing a lawsuit challenging Pennsylvania’s election results, U.S. District Judge Matthew Brann stated:
“This Court has been presented with strained legal arguments without merit and speculative accusations… In the United States of America, this cannot justify the disenfranchisement of a single voter, let alone all the voters of its sixth most populated state.”
Similarly, Judge Stephanos Bibas of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit remarked:
“Free, fair elections are the lifeblood of our democracy. Charges of unfairness are serious. But calling an election unfair does not make it so. Charges require specific allegations and then proof. We have neither here.”
Again, Trump is utterly incompetent.
One question please. Utterly incompetent at what?
Your TDS is showing anon .
Why do you refuse to accept facts?
Name one case that was dismissed on merit alone?
It might make sense to separate out the federal elections.
The constitution sets the date for the election of congress and the president. Seems to me there should be 1 federal Election Day where you step in and vote for your senator (if one is running), your congress person, and the president (electors). Very short and in and out. Line moves fast. Makes it easy to have all voting in person with ID with few exceptions like deployment in the military.
All the rest of local elections and state elections should be on another day. I really don’t care what South Carolina, or Oregon vote for or even California since all are over a 500 miles away. I’ll stay up to see who is wins the house, senate and presidency. Local races I’ll read about the next day.
Let the state courts deal with the local and state races with only rare federal intervention. The Federal courts can then deal with the Federal Elections without all the other clutter.
The constitution does give congress the right to intervene in elections from “time to time” and not leave it totally to the states.
Local and state elections are extremely important but too often they get overshadowed by the Federal elections. State and Local elections should have their own day in the sun.
GEB,
That is an interesting idea. I think it has to do with manpower. I know a few of the people on our town’s election board. All volunteer. Some are retirees. A few though have regular jobs. Not sure if they can afford to take an additional day off of work. I think they should be allowed a paid day off of work to fulfill election duties but I think that is up to the employer.
*Number of electors per state is based on population. Would that be only citizen population?
Just looking for perks in being a citizen other than paying taxes.
Not too long ago, Kamala Harris was hated by her peers, by her subordinates and by her yellow press.
Kamala is wearing the emperor’s new clothes, and Act Blue’s millions of fake ballots
‘Not a healthy environment’: Kamala Harris’ office rife with dissent
There is dysfunction inside the VP’s office, aides and administration officials say. And it’s emanating from the top.
https://www.politico.com/news/2021/06/30/kamala-harris-office-dissent-497290
Administration officials perplexed by Harris’ border answer and worry it will overshadow her trip
“At some point, you know, we are going to the border,” Harris said in the interview. “We’ve been to the border. So this whole, this whole, this whole thing about the border. We’ve been to the border. We’ve been to the border.”
Holt responded: “You haven’t been to the border.”
“I, and I haven’t been to Europe. And I mean, I don’t – I don’t understand the point that you’re making,” Harris said with a laugh. She added: “I’m not discounting the importance of the border.”
https://www.cnn.com/2021/06/08/politics/kamala-harris-border/index.html
Just months ago, WaPo called for her to step down as VP.
She is a fake candidate, a place holder, and an air head.
For the country’s sake, Vice President Harris should step aside
By Kathleen Parker
March 15, 2024
The Kamala conundrum comes down to this: She was picked because she was Black and female, a combo tantamount to job security. Now that she has become a burden to the Democratic ticket, Biden can’t fire her. He can’t risk alienating his base. Full stop. The seriousness of this situation can’t be overstated. Biden’s diminishing faculties, notwithstanding his relatively successful State of the Union address, and his increasing physical frailty are concerning.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2024/03/15/kamala-harris-quit-biden-2024/
Estovir,
It gets worse, Biden spent billions to delay Medicare premiums spike, protect Harris campaign before election
“Seniors groups warn that Biden budget gimmickry means “taxpayers are footing the bill today, seniors will pay the price tomorrow.”
Keep in mind, Trump wins and this gimick hits, they will claim this is all Trumps fault when it was Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act.
https://justthenews.com/politics-policy/elections/biden-harris-administration-spent-big-tamp-down-medicare-prices-right
Dear Mr. Turley, whenever the “shoe is on the other foot” democrats scream like crazy. Rep. Raskin is sounding like Mr. Trump? No surprise there. I have already voted, and I voted for Mr. Trump. Energy independence is a very important issue as well as securing the border. Experts state there are more than 300,000 children locked into sex trafficking in our country due to the border being wide open. And why would anyone say it’s “healthcare” to murder a pre-born child? Anyone voting for Harris has blood on their hands from the two innocent groups of children mentioned here, the pre-born and the sex trafficked ones.
Has anyone seen AOC crying her heart out for those 300,000 children who have mysteriously vanished?
I like the Nosferatu photo. Halloween is not over, apparently. Brings to mind a line from the old “LA Law” TV series: “MY attorneys are worse than death, honey.”
Love the reference to Elon and ‘rocket science’🤣
* so true. Just ask Musk to design a foolproof voting system. It’ll take him about 2 minutes.
The Gallup poll you mentioned could be meaningless. American’s election is administered and controlled by local government and election officials. Voters’ trust in elections depends on their trust in local government. They do not and cannot represent their trust to any other place, let alone the whole country’s elections.
What, you think that just because I live in one county in one state, I can not with good reason distrust the results of elections in another county or state ?
I do not trust my local government for schiff. But oddly the one thing they are likely to do well is elections.
Part of that is because outside of rare primaries elections here are never close. There is no reason to even try to play games.
Systemic fraud is highly unlikely in elections that are not very close.
But my state is notorious for not following election laws, and its partisan supreme court for making up new election laws from whole cloth in the middle of elections. So No I do not trust elections.
“I WOULD FURTHER NOTE” that John Say has been obsessively commenting with incoherent, rambling thoughts all night.
Apparently he does not sleep.
This is not normal behavior.
It is not the product of a healthy mind.
“I do not trust my local government for schiff. But oddly the one thing they are likely to do well is elections.
Part of that is because outside of rare primaries elections here are never close. There is no reason to even try to play games. ”
Same here, and likely many, many other places. Our local officials are all Republicans. No other candidates appear on the ballot. A decade or so ago there was one lone local businessman who was a Democrat, and he would run for council each time, and lose badly, even though he appeared to be more qualified than some of the other candidates. Given the lack of competition, the Republicans here are predictably corrupt and unaccountable to taxpayers. The bottom line is that, while there are occasional rumblings on some issues from residents, those officials do not do any one thing quite badly enough to generate serious opposition. But the process of conducting our elections does run like clockwork.
I’m equally concerned about the reports that our warfighters out of country can’t vote because there are no ballots on base. Is that true? If so, why? If not true, why are we being fed those optics?
Just as well. The military tilts vastly liberal.
Generally not. The brass tends to be neoconish, but enlisted soldiers tend to be conservative.
John Say,
You are correct. I can say that as a former military type myself.
Wrong. The Dempsey study show that only 32% of enlisted personnel in the Army identify as conservative.
Day before the election: Can anyone give a reason to support Trump that is not based on stupidity, ignorance, gullibility, or bigotry?
Forgot to include the reason also can’t be based on lies.
The answer starts with his fixing an ice rink when nobody else could.
@sammy
I’ve already voted for him, 😛 a straight red ticket for the third election in a row, in fact. I needn’t justify it to you or anyone else.
Same here James! Freaking hilarious that Sammy’s qualifications list are right off the Kamal-Walz presidential candidate qualifications prerequisites, of course it omitted the skilled fellatio and tampon disclaimers.
The rhetoric, the intelligence, and the ethics of his opposition is the largest reason I am supporting him.
You’re actually saying with a straight face that Trump’s intelligent? He played golf in Ireland the day he could have taken the stand to defend himself in his rape trial. He loses the trial, whines and complains and you believe him. Not only does he lack intelligence but anyone you believes his outlandish lies lacks it, too.
How does anyone support Trump? They just think about supporting Harris and then remove stupidity, ignorance, gullibility and bigotry.
You’re welcome.
“. . . and then remove . . .”
Very clever reference to “As Good as It Gets” (a terrific movie).
Yes sir. Well done.
Policies
Polices
Policies, like “Just wait till you see my health plan. We’ll have it out in 2 weeks. It’s far better and far cheaper than Obamacare.” — Donald Trump, 2016.
Policies, like “We’re going to build a wall and Mexico is going to pay for it.” — Donald Trump, 2016.
Policies, like “The national debt will be gone in two years! Two years.” — Donald Trump, 2016. Meanwhile, Trump adds more to the debt in his first two years than any administration in history.
See Anonymous’ post above
“Can anyone give a reason to support Trump . . .”
How about 13 (among countless others):
Gas, groceries, rent, utilities, insurance rates, interest rates, crime at home and criminals abroad, sick of DEI and Woke, don’t care for progressivism or socialism, like free speech and 2A.
Sam,
Well said and spot on!
We cannot afford another Biden/Harris four years. We cannot continue to wage this proxy war with Russia by sending millions and millions of dollars and military material to the Ukraine. We cannot continue to play this stupid game of WWIII chicken and possible nuclear war. None of that is based on stupidity, ignorance, gullibility, or bigotry.
We cannot afford another Biden/Harris four years. / Yes, we can.
We cannot continue to wage this proxy war with Russia by sending millions and millions of dollars and military material to the Ukraine. / Wrong. America’s position as the dominant economy in the world is entirely based on us hegemony. If it weren’t for US military dominance around the world there would be no free global market. America’s lower middle class would be in poverty.
We cannot continue to play this stupid game of WWIII chicken and possible nuclear war. / Wrong. We’ve been playing it since 1945. There’s no avoiding it. Your pansy flowerchild view of the world, running away when bullies threaten with a nuke is stupid.
I would say, if you truly want to round up 20 million people, put them in camps, and send them out of the country. If you like the idea of having sleazy sex with women who work in pornography. If you think your daughter is sexually hot, that you’d date her if she weren’t your daughter, and that she could pose for Playboy. If you like dealing with people you don’t agree with by insulting them. If you support Russia and Vladimir Putin. These are actual reasons to support Trump.
@Anonymi
In all sincerity, before I got to the bottom of this and saw ‘Trump’, I thought you were describing the post 2016 DNC, as they have done or have threatened to do almost all of those things to anyone who disagrees with/stands up to/is perceived as a threat to them, particularly post covid and 2020, and their moral behavior has circled much grosser drains even in the halls of Congress and The White House in that time. 🤷🏽♂️
There are occasions I think TDS is actually a form of self-reconciliation for people’s own rotten behavior or bad decisions – finally they have a universal scapegoat in ‘Trump’.
Trump is an immoral, unethical sewer in a suit.
@Anonymi
I could repeat my entire previous comment. If you had something other than invective daddy issues and butthurt to offer, it would be so much easier to take your input seriously. Since you don’t, and never do -> 🤷🏻♂️🥱
When did anyone consider you a pillar of morality? Your comments prove yourself to be an immoral individual who cannot think.
So you accept that Bideen/Harris allowed 20M illegal aliens into the country ? That they did not honor their oath to enforce the constitution and law of the land ?
” round up 20 million people, put them in camps, and send them out of the country.”
If they all settled near your home, how would you feel? Would you praise anyone who prevented that from happening? Your answer must be no.
You don’t care about the millions of people who legally wish to get in. That shows you aren’t a good person, for you accept lawbreakers over those who enter the country legally. You also don’t care about your neighbor, his taxes, and his access to those things he is familiar with.
Why are you such a hateful person?
almost 80% of the people in this country think the federal government is headed in the wrong direction.
Sammy wrote, “Day before the election: Can anyone give a reason to support Trump that is not based on stupidity, ignorance, gullibility, or bigotry?”
Sure, I can without any hesitation whatsoever.
Voting for Trump is voting to maintain the Constitution of the United States, voting for any Democrat is voting against the Constitution, PERIOD!
There is NOTHING more important to our society and culture than the Constitution. This is a one issue election for me.
Democrats have shown us that they care not for the Constitution because it limits their ability to ram their ideology down the throats of the American people. I say to those Constitution hating anti-American Democrats, “Bite Me!” the Constitution stands and any issue you put up is simply a smoke screen to try and hide your anti-Constitution anti-American totalitarian tendencies. These anti-Constitution Democrats have become cultish enemies of the Constitution, enemies of democracy, and therefore enemies to the freedom loving people of the United States of America. Democrats have effectively become the evil which they once professed to oppose. These ignorant Democrats should seriously consider who they’re turning into enemies.
Something is amiss, suddenly I’m hearing from the New Democrat party “election integrity”. This morning I heard one of their surrogates use the “election integrity” in an interview. They balk at any form of voter verification or voter roll cleanup, so why suddenly the great concern for “election integrity”? Could it be we’re being setup for something we didn’t see coming or do they expect a defeat they see coming? Remember the Dems always blame their opponents for what they’ve done or about to do, it’s their one big tell.
Ds would be for voter ID if it is provided to every eligible voter for free without having to jump though hoops. But Rs won’t go for that because they see voter ID as a way to make it harder to vote.
Also voter fraud is so rare that it makes little sense to make it harder to vote to fix an effectively non-issue.
“. . . for free without having to jump though hoops.”
Typical Leftist’s anti-effort, looter mentality: I want something. I hate effort. Others should just give it to me.
“Ds would be for voter ID if it is provided to every eligible voter for free without having to jump though hoops.”
Democrats ARE overwhelmingly for Voter ID – it is only democratic politicians and activist groups that fight it.
Every state with voter ID laws allows people to get voter ID for free -if they do not already have it.
The only “hoops” you must jump through are the same ones required to register to vote – proof of residency and in some states proof of citizenship.
you have been listening to far too much MSNBC and rotted your brain.
“But Rs won’t go for that because they see voter ID as a way to make it harder to vote.”
Again typical of the left – telling us all they know how other people – particularly people who do NOT share their values think.
There is actually very good reason to make voting hard – it is called moral hazard. People behave recklessly when there is no cost involved.
Not just voting, but pretty much everything. This is why insurance companies want copays – so that people are not suing ER’s and doctors as social events.
If I could I would mandate that everyone who wished to vote had to do so in the midst of a huricane.
That would result in fewer people like you who were ill informed or uninformed.
But making voting harder is not the goal of republicans. Making elections trustworthy is. Voter ID is part of that.
Focusing on Transparency – simplicity are other means to improve trust. If voters do not trust election results – then government is not legitimate.
“Also voter fraud is so rare that it makes little sense to make it harder to vote to fix an effectively non-issue.”
That is an absurdly stupid argument.
If election fraud is rare it is only because we make election fraud difficult.
In the 19th century when political parties printed prefilled out ballots and people merely had to put an X on for a signature and drop them in a ballot box, Fraud was rampant. voters were paid $3 on average for their vote.
When mechancal voting machines were retired by HAVE in 2001 – every single one was found to have teeth filed off atleast one of the gears . Fraud in cook county Illinois is legendary. Have you heard of Tammany Hall ? The infamous story of Johnson slipping ballot boxes with 80,000 additional ballots into his first senate race was confirmed by one of his campaign staff on their deathbed.
In my state someone has been convicted of running ballots through tabulators over and over in every election during my lifetime.
Whether you like it or not Fraud in close elections in commonplace.
Further that should be expected.
We have a presidential campaign that has spent Billions of dollars.
The outcome of the election will determine the distribution of trillions of dollars of spending
Aside from the obvious reasons that parties, political operatives and politiciians might wish to commit election fraud.
Myriads of private actors motivated solely financially without any connection to campaigns for either party have excelent incentives to commit election fraud.
If you make election fraud easy – you will get LOTS of election fraud.
The closer elections are the more prevalent fraud will be.
Thwarting election fraud is actually quite easy.
Simple, transparent elections.
Vote only at polls with voter ID only on election day, only in precincts of 15000 or less, on paper ballots that never leave the precinct, and are counted by hand in public on election day.
Countries all over the world do this – even undeveloped countries, and they do so securely and with very high degrees of trust.
The more complicated you make voting the more oportunities for fraud and error you create.
John Say,
Great comment.
“ There is actually very good reason to make voting hard – it is called moral hazard. People behave recklessly when there is no cost involved.”
There’s nothing in any law or the constitution that uses moral hazard as a reason to make voting harder. Nothing. Anyone qualified to vote can vote for whatever reason. Mentally ill people can vote. People with Alzheimer’s can vote. The senile can vote. Absolutely nothing prevents them from voting.
Who determines who is considered a moral hazard?
People behave recklessly when there’s no accountability involved.
“ Vote only at polls with voter ID only on election day, only in precincts of 15000 or less, on paper ballots that never leave the precinct, and are counted by hand in public on election day.”
In order for that to be feasible I would assume you would support making elections day a national holiday. That would allow everyone the opportunity to vote without having to worry about missing work or school. Make it a paid holiday. Last I heard republicans were against that idea.
Having precincts with only 15,000 or less would require a lot more polling places and more staff. I doubt states would cough up the funds to maintain that.
Why rob banks?
That’s where the money is.
Why register illegals?that’s where the votes are.
* What if they’re just names and no person involved ? The mail ins go to a hub and are filled out and mailed back.
* Why would any undocumented person want to register? To pay taxes? I don’t think so. What is your big citizenship perk, Gary?
There is no connection between tax rolls and voter rolls.
* John Say , you have brain glitches. You frequently have difficulty with analogies. Are you AI?
COPY TheSe nUmBers/Symbols: W7%8sw4
Battle Lines are drawn, Lawyers awaiting orders to charge but, what if the vote margins, even in some tight states, such as Penn or Wisconsin? turn out the the polls are wrong, race spread is wider than any court action could effect? Many of the public polls are over sampling, thumb on the scale, voters refusing to comment, the Trump Hidden Vote, as even NY Times admits? The most accurate polls are the private polls which Wall Street and others are paying a lot of $$$$ for are telling them different things than public. Simply watch NH to get an idea, if its close or Trump wins, its a big night for Trump?, same for VA. Their is a large hidden vote in Nevada, Wisconsin, PA, NC where pollsters have missed, since voters will not take time to answer or won’t anser pollsters. But, its fumnny how many polls all of a sudden are 1 point area or tied? Pollsters are not being honest? to end this I saw one well known pollster put out PA favors Trump, shortly after they put out this comment, they quickly changed their mind, sense they got a call from DEMS.
“Pollsters are not being honest?”
Nate Silver, as respected a pollster as anyone living, outright accused other pollsters of deliberately lying in order to influence voters. Also, there is this:
Half of Gen Z voters say they’ve lied about their votes: Survey
https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/4961700-gen-z-voters-lie-candidates-poll/
Maybe it’s theoretically possible that most of those Gen Z voters have voted/are voting for Harris, but said their votes were for Trump, but, given the politics ascribed to most of that group, and the biases of its most prominent members, I very much doubt that. I suspect that the phenomenon is a net plus for the Trump vote. Also, even though the poll was for Generation X voters, I would be very surprised if it is not happening to a significant extent among other age groups, and, again, my strong suspicion is that it would also be net plus for Trump. My personal opinion is that anyone deluded enough to vote for Harris is also deluded enough to wear that vote like a badge, expecting nothing but accolades as a result…
I like and respect Nate, but even he has a long history of slight left bias.
I agree, I have been reading him off and on since 2008. I find his bias predictable, and relatively easy to take into account (I could make an identical statement about Professor Turley). It certainly does not make Silver wrong in his assessment of other pollsters for this election.
The Seltzer Poll in Iowa. The Dems pounced on it like it was manna from heaven
Emerson came out a few days later with Trump +10.5 in Iowa.
While IA is notoriously difficult to poll. republicans routinely win it by well over 10pts – including Trump twice.
There is no good reason to beleive Trump is doing 15pts worse in IA in 2024 than in 2020.
There seems to be some conflict. If folks don’t have confidence in election results, then why do they bother to vote?
Good point. Let’s hope the MAGAs sit this one out.
Wishful thinking from a fool.
@Anonmi
There is no such thing as ‘MAGA’, and it must terrify you that independent voters like me want to see the modern dems, every single one, banished for good until they fracture and recalibrate. Go blow. This country was founded as the antithesis of elitism or globalism, and so it will remain, whether you like it or not.
Because our elections are not sufficiently screwed up yet for more than about 1pt of fraud without getting caught.
So long as it is likely that Trump will win the popular vote, engaging in the kind of fraud there was in 2020 is foolish and D;s would likely to get caught.
If Trump wins VA and NH or is within 5pts in NY, MN, and NM who is going to beleive that he lost PA ?
There will be fraud in 2024 – there is always fraud. But there will not likely be half as much as 2020.
We are not even close to properly securing our elections.
But we know how the fraud was conducted in 2020, and people are watching for it in 2024.
The best disinfectant is sunlight.