Once again the chaos of the 2020 elections found itself relived in Wisconsin. On a recent Friday, the leader of Wisconsin’s election commission solidified Donald Trump’s victory, a strange sense of deja vu prevailing over a Zoom teleconference which lasted only six minutes. Commission Chair Ann Jacobs found herself confirming Trump’s triumph, with a total of 1,697,626 votes dwarfing Kamala Harris’ measly 1,668,229 votes.
The event must have fallen considerably short of expectations for Harris’ supporters, especially when compared to the chaotic aftermath of the 2020 contest. During that year, Trump, naturally refusing to acknowledge his defeat, found himself forced to demand a recount in Dane and Milwaukee counties. These are well-known havens for Democrats, but the recount barely scratched the surface of the original tallies.
Trump didn’t stop at that, he took it further by suing to disqualify an alarming 221,000 ballots in these same Democratic strongholds. Among his targets were absentee ballots lodged early and in person, which according to him weren’t accompanied by an adequate written request. He tried to toss out ballots by ‘indefinitely confined’ voters, ballots collected at Madison’s parks by poll workers, as well as ballots that were tampered with by clerks who added missing details.
In a show of justice that reified Trump’s fight against Democratic deception, the state Supreme Court, in December 2020, dismissed the case. It declared four of Trump’s claims as belated and another one as unfounded. Concurrently, another federal Judge dismissed a lawsuit brought about by two Republican legislators and voting rights groups alongside others that sought to reverse the election outcome.
Michael Gableman, a former state Supreme Court Justice, was roped in by Wisconsin Assembly Speaker Robin Vos in a desperate attempt to uncover so-called ‘fraud and abuse’ allegations related to the election. A thorough examination yielded no positive outcome for their curious cause. Laughably, Gableman found himself on the receiving end of a complaint from the state Office of Lawyer Regulation accusing him of numerous breaches of conduct during his investigation.
The state Supreme Court is yet to deliver its verdict on what, if any, disciplinary measures should be imposed on Gableman. Meanwhile, the election commission’s nonpartisan administrator, Meagan Wolfe, was a most unlikely figure to be targeted by conspiracy theorists. These skeptics fabricated false claims of her participating in a nefarious plot to rig the 2020 election in Biden’s favor.
Adding another chapter to this unending drama, Republican legislators are presently endeavoring to dispose of Meagan Wolfe. In a commendable show of democracy, however, the commission is striving to retain her through a pending lawsuit. The state Supreme Court is currently tasking with ruling over this complex situation.
While the nation experienced a conservative calm after Trump’s November victory, it hasn’t escaped the vigilant eyes of a certain faction within the GOP. This group continues to tenaciously doubt the sanctity of the electoral process, especially when it comes to the use of mail ballots and vote scanning systems.
Fortunately, some states that witnessed tumultuous certification occurrences during the 2020 election and the 2022 midterms have made some progress. They’ve managed to uneventfully sanction their results in recent weeks. The list includes states that were previously hotbeds for conflict such as Arizona, Michigan, Nevada, and New Mexico.
It’s intriguing to observe that amidst much political ruckus, the certifying of election results maintains its quiet, almost mundane cadence. When contrasted against the backdrop of political posturing and accusatory lawsuits, it becomes a notable beacon of stability.
Ultimately, the often underappreciated task of election workers, tirelessly validating each vote, is what gives strength to our democracy. Interestingly, it’s their resilience and commitment that keeps the election machinery running, even in the face of baseless accusations and dubious legal kerfuffles.
It’s disheartening to see the undermining of this significant democratic process and its dedicated workers. Particularly, when this disregard comes from influential figures who tend to focus on personal narratives, rather than championing the larger democratic ideals.
In conclusion, the legitimacy of elections ought to transcend partisan politics. Hopefully, the lessons learned from the Wisconsin experience will reinforce the necessity to uphold, not erode, the pillars of our democratic system.