Volume 8, Issue 24
The fourth test, predictable in date, will be the general election for President and control of Congress.
It is not the outcome of the election that will be the test, even though the country’s decision will set a divergent course for the next generation. The process of conducting the election is not the test, even though much debate and consideration will go into the protocol of expanding absentee ballots. The test will be whether or not the public retains belief that the election was fair, representative, constructive, and conclusive in our democratic process.
Therefore, in establishing confidence in the fourth test, America unites as a country in the compromise of the ballot box.
The only question to be answered in reference to the fourth test is, what provides confidence in the public’s psyche that everyone had a fair shake in the election experience?
Already, talking heads on TV, and campaign officials for both President Trump and former Vice President Biden, are warning that the other side is trying to steal the election. It’s as if partisans are afraid that the logic and merits of their positions are not enough to carry the message for the day.
The United States has set an example not only for the rest of the world, but in history itself for the “peaceful transfer of power.” This idea of a democracy “of the people” was as revolutionary in 1776 as was the idea that government exists to serve the people. We as a country have periodically faced incendiary issues as common course in the maturing of governance. America’s history, and therefore the composite of our cultural identity, is replete with economic conflict and racial inequality. However, through the respect for the integrity of the election system, we have accepted the outcome of elections as the will of our great society, a fraternity in which we are all members. In this electoral process, we have grown as a nation to be cognizant of liberty, rights, and righteousness for all citizens. Progress, even though paroxysmal at times, is evident.
In what has appeared to be intractable differences, we have found commonality through the acceptance of free and fair elections. Election results have not dissuaded us of our convictions or reduced our emotional commitments. The great American democratic experiment has allowed us to live together with our differences. This does not mean that we have given in, compromised, or been defeated by the representation of our moral values. We have learned to continue the good fight in the debate, discussion, and dialogue of policy in the open marketplace of ideas.
Many suggestions will be proffered on the legal machinations to control and restrict the election process. Every order of society depends upon the honor of the people exercising their rights judiciously for stability to be maintained. The old adage that one cannot legislate morality applies to honesty in elections. We either respect each other in the fair calculation of the decision-making process or we deny the legitimacy of democracy.
Yes, there must be moral disciplines underpinning the privilege to vote. One should be a U.S. citizen. Everyone should take it upon themselves to understand basic civics, the structure of American government, and the aggregate nature of federal policy. We each should be unselfish in deciding how to vote, at least in the context of strengthening democracy and not just in pursuing explicitly special personal interests.
There have been voting process abuses in the past that must be monitored and eliminated. The right to a private ballot is critical. No one should watch you vote, direct you in your decision while voting, or know how you voted. This is why poll watchers in certain precincts are so critical. Intimidation is an electoral abomination.
There must never again be any requirements on status in society to be eligible to vote. The only requirement is that you are a United States citizen. Currently, registration is necessary. There is no reason why, in the future, facial recognition could not suffice for personal identification at the polls. Someday, voting may be extended to kiosks in strategic places.
The public will do fine with absentee ballots as long as partisan operatives do not handle the ballot or interfere with the voter’s decision. It is the partisans who manipulate the process and skate on the edge of fraud. It is very seldom the voter.
This election cycle is destined to be tumultuous. Emotions now at a fever pitch will continue to ebb and flow dramatically. The three concurrent tests now facing our country, the pandemic, the economic challenges, and racial tensions, will not find full resolution before the election. What’s paramount in importance to the future of America is that, in these times, we find confidence and comfort to carry on as one culture in the compromise of the election. Determination and consideration must be thorough in what brings one peace in the electoral process. For this great gift of democracy that America has given to the world, only we collectively can strengthen and protect it for posterity.
American democracy is the hope of the world.
May we meet critical expectations and find confidence in the fourth test.
My name is Marc Nuttle and this is what I believe.
What do you believe?