The lifeblood of our democratic republic is a system of elections in which municipal, state and national officials maintain or hand over their offices depending on the outcome. Besides the systems for voting, there are elaborate processes for challenging and auditing the results. And there is an orderly transfer of power.
In tyrannies there may be electoral systems but results are corrupted to give the image of legitimacy to a despot. What we face in the United States is an equivalent threat, where the elections are free and fair, but a former president will not accept the legitimacy of the results. In either case, we fail to have a democracy.
Election denialism is a hallmark of MAGA extremism. Working for the election of an independent minded Republican in Easton’s non-partisan local elections this summer gave me as a Democrat a unique look into the mechanics of local MAGA extremism, in a campaign against their candidate Frank Gunsallus.
I hasten to add that this candidate had tremendous support from the rest of the community as the results of the election demonstrate. But MAGA extremists were the ones in the trenches.
Election denialism is alive in a handful of local hard right websites: Easton Gazette, Talbot Chapter of Moms for Liberty, and Radio Free Oxford. They churn limited material including articles on elections by Chris Gleason (Maryland has a “massive election fraud RICO operation”).
Besides election denial, these sites have other priorities, including attacking inclusive curriculum for African American and LGBT+ students and opposing pandemic public health measures, with strands of fundamentalist Christian anti-government paranoia and anti-abortion sentiments woven through.
The real MAGA engine is the current Talbot Republican Central Committee. Most recently it treated Easton to an event challenging the reliability of Maryland’s election system.
This was part of a nationwide traveling road show featuring three different presenters who massage local data to raise questions with election reliability. They seek to give the patina of grassroots by having local organizations as sponsors.
Rudy Giuliani’s events in Arizona, Michigan and Pennsylvania questioning the results of the 2020 election were similar. But Donald Trump supporters filed and lost 62 lawsuits contesting election processes, including vote counting, and the vote certification processes in 9 states.
It’s no different in Maryland. Any serious claim of irregularities here should be taken through the courts not dangled for partisan political purposes to discourage unsuspecting voters.
This election denial event was originally scheduled to be held at unsuspecting Sts. Peter and Paul and Easton Club East before they became aware that this was a partisan political event sponsored by the Talbot Republican Central Committee.
I continue to be reassured by the belief that “the arc of history bends toward justice”. Now my thought for the day is “a democracy if you can keep it”. I suggest all democracy loving people get off the benches, realize what’s at stake, get educated and get involved.
Holly Wright
Talbot County
Charles E. Yonkers says
Thank God for this kind of truth telling. I don’t know Holly Wright, but I salute her and her bravery (yes) in writing this forthright statement of a reality…. right here in our back yard. It’s chilling. Bravo to her and to you, Mr. Talbot Spy.
Holly Wright says
Thank you for the encouragement and understanding the challenge.
Gerry Early says
It’s not clear from the third paragraph of this letter whether the MAGA crowd were for or against Frank Gunsallus in the recent election. I recently read in another Talbot Spy report that Mr Gunsallus was one of the GOP officials who attended the recent “stop the steal” pro-Trump election fraud gathering at the Talbot Community Center.
Willard T Engelskirchen says
Thank you for this informative piece. Most of us do not know when such events are going to be held. Recent events have reinforced my resolve to vote for Republicans in only rare instances.
Denice Lombard says
Well said, Holly!
Totch Hartge says
Thank you Ms Wright
Lots of us certainly feel the same. I am sorry to see some distingished local politicians wanting to ban books and deny full voting rights. Will be helping to register everybody and get them all voting next year.
Proud veteran and father of 5 EHS graduates.
Totch Hartge
Easton
Michael Pullen says
Thank you Holly for shining the lights on this. Our local, State, and federal elections are well run, free and fair.
Anyone who can prove otherwise is welcome to use our judicial system to try and do so. If you claim to have “proof” but are unwilling to present it to a Court of law, then you don’t believe what you claim to believe. Merely attacking election results when you lose is an assault on democracy itself.
Tim Furey says
I am not quite sure why challenging election integrity is “un~democratic.” Hillary Clinton herself has spent 6 years claiming the 2016 election was stolen from her. Rather, as we accelerate the migration to vote-by-mail everyone should want to revisit the processes and safeguards of fair elections. To brand voting process questioning as somehow “MAGA driven” is both intellectually lazy and biased in its own right.
All Talbot citizens should embrace a thorough review — seems like the anti-MAGA are afraid of what might be uncovered. As they say, “Democracy Dies in Darkness.”
Holly Wright says
Is that all you have?
My sympathies. Its obviously tough marketing a candidate like Donald Trump who requires taking voters down conspiratorial rabbit holes and undermining public confidence in election results. You must have to hold your nose for that.
Mickey Terrone says
Well stated, Holly! I’d add that we never seem to hear from Republicans who get elected on the same ticket as those Republicans who lose. As I recall, several Republican elected officials who attended and supported the alleged “integrity” event recently, made no effort to explain how they were elected on the same ticket as other Republicans who lost. Isn’t this just a preview for the Republicans’ 2024 attempt to undermine the upcoming results? This is beginning to look like an orchestrated attempt to create post-election chaos and violence if or when Democrats win the White House and both Houses of Congress along with stronger representation statewide in Maryland and other states. Millions of voters are likely to boot Republican representatives who demonstrated complete incompetence to govern and have no plan to support the needs of average Americans nationwide. Republicans need closely to watch the tribulations of Sidney Powell and Kenneth Chesbro as they explain their depraved effort to undermine the US election process fraudulently to keep Donald Trump in power.
Chris Gleason says
Right to the hyperbole and personal attacks, calling people election deniers and racists? When all you have in your toolbox is a hammer everything looks like a nail.
We are still willing, ready and able to discuss the theft of elections via the illegal certification of elections using voting systems that had EAC certifications that were void in their entirety.
When do we all get to sit around and explore the audit logs together?
Or are we at a stage where the bolsheviks have shut down any and all facts, evidence, logic, reason and debate?
Gary Judy says
Not surprising democrats start name calling and labeling anyone who questions anything they don’t like. A simple release of information that has already been tabulated will answer any questions anyone may have. BUT our State election board seems to want to slow walk any transparency under the freedom of information act. So far they haven’t been forthcoming with public records after being requested multiple times by multiple citizens, in multiple counties across our State.
Why?
And why did Joe Biden announce BEFORE this last election
” We have put together I think the most extensive and inclusive voter fraud organization in the history of American politics”
And yet Transparency of public information from our State election board hasn’t been forthcoming. Why?
Carolyn Ewing says
I have rarely read such obtuse commentary on the attempt to focus attention on the importance of integrity in our election process. If Ms Wright read anything other than White House sanctioned media, she would understand that there were multiple instances of voter fraud not only in 2020, but in the mid-term elections as well, but that reality is threatening to many people.
Although I have become accustomed to Ms Wright’s vitriolic tone over the years, I find that my tolerance for it is diminished by the lack of veracity, insight and moral awareness. Furthermore, the quotation from Benjamin Franklin is not as she quoted: the correct quote is “a Republic, Madam, if you can keep it.” But it appears that she does not understand the fundamental difference between a democracy and a republic. I suggest she read the Constitution, the Federalist Papers and de Toqueville.
Holly Wright says
Thank you for the correction on the quote. To capture my meaning I should have made it a democratic republic if you can keep it.