Several elections that are likely to have profound impacts on democracy in the aftermath of November 8 will go largely unnoticed.
In the United States, there is reason to worry about the future of democracy. Some readers may be thinking, “What’s the problem? If Americans want to elect Republicans and pave the way for a Trump comeback, that’s their choice. »
The real problem is not that a Republican Congress would paralyze the US government for two years. Such is democracy. In fact, the problem is that Americans could well lose their democracy.
Close the door for good
There are politicians who can’t help but say out loud what they should just mumble. On Monday, Republican candidate for Wisconsin governor Tim Michels said if elected, his party will never again lose an election in the state.
In Wisconsin, the two parties have roughly similar support bases. The state backed Trump in 2016 and Biden in 2020, narrowly each time. In the legislature, on the other hand, the tampering with the electoral cards ensures the Republicans solid majorities.
The current Democratic governor’s veto is the only thing stopping Republicans from bringing in rules that would make it harder for thousands of Democrats to get to the polls and make Michels’ wish come true. And this is not an isolated case.
Hundreds of cases
In several states, elections that escape our notice will have a decisive impact on democracy.
In Ohio, Michigan and North Carolina, for example, Republicans are betting big on electing state supreme court justices to validate doctored voter maps and voting restrictions.
In dozens of states, elective positions at the county and state level will go to Republicans determined to impose as many obstacles as possible to the exercise of the right to vote by groups normally associated with the opposing party.
Democracy at stake
Republicans pose a real threat to democracy. At the risk of repeating myself, the problem is not with their right-wing policies. If the Republicans want to emulate the pitiful “anti-inflation plan” of the British Conservatives or slash social security and health care, that would probably be catastrophic, but not undemocratic.
The real problem is that in addition to endorsing a leader who refuses to accept defeat, the Republicans seek to manipulate the institutions and the rules of the political game to make the alternation of power excessively difficult, if not impossible. Like Trump, many Republican candidates are quick to proclaim that any election result that disadvantages them is necessarily suspect.
It is no coincidence that the new heroes of the American right are autocrats like the Hungarian Viktor Orban or the Russian Vladimir Putin, who have practically reduced the uncertainty of the electoral results to nothing.
Fortunately, there remains a degree of uncertainty in the forecast of next Tuesday’s results, but it is certain that, more than ever, democracy itself will be at stake.
