PROTECTING OUR ELECTION

October 18, 2020
http://www.dictatorwatch.org/prprotectingourelection.html

By Arden Buck

Desperate for a Trump victory, the Right has resorted to suppressing the vote. They have worked to cripple the Post Office, to hamper voting in person, and to prevent full vote counting. Fake voting boxes were recently set up in California. Millions of eligible voters have already been pushed out of the system.

Worse, Trump has repeatedly threatened to reject any outcome that does not result in his re-election. If he loses, he may well refuse to leave office.

This is not just something to watch on TV and wait until "someone" figures it out. We all need to get involved - to ensure a fair vote and to squelch any attempted power grab. It's not about Left vs. Right; it's about defending our democracy from collapsing. This is an "all hands on deck" moment. Fortunately, we are seeing an upwelling of actions to protect our vote, and we can help these actions grow stronger.

Everyone can do something. Here are some ways: We can volunteer to help alleviate the shortage of poll workers (https://www.powerthepolls.org/ and https://www.workelections.com/). And we can help protect against voter intimidation (https://protectthevote.net/). And, if Trump refuses to accept the voting results, we will need to swiftly mount a massive response.

There's no way for Trump to continue if enough people refuse orders, walk out of school and work, and disrupt "business as usual" until all votes are counted and the rightful winner is recognized. (But it's essential to avoid violence, which can defeat our efforts.)

This is not about single actions like marches, but rather ongoing mass actions everywhere. Useful guides can be found at https://holdthelineguide.com/ and https://mailchi.mp/nonviolencenews.org/nonviolence-news-oct-seven.

We have power. Coup attempts worldwide have been stopped by regular folks taking actions that made society ungovernable and thereby prevented a takeover.