T is election is not being stolen
The vote count in key swing states indicates Joe Biden will be the next president of the United States. However, we should all brace for the expectation that there will be recounts in these states.
Our nation’s election officials — who are elected, appointed and managed at the local level — are diligent and capable.
The vote count might change, but we have confidence the changes will be small. The margin of victory, as of Friday afternoon, was small enough in Georgia, Arizona, and Pennsylvania that it is possible a recount could shift this election back in President Donald Trump’s favor.
Be patient while we wait for this process to play out.
Patience does not include vandalizing property, as a small group of anarchists did on election night in Denver marching down Colfax in a ridiculous protest of … well … we guess democracy? Their actions hurt business owners who are already struggling. It was wrongheaded.
Patience also does not include alleging that this election has been fraudulent, illegitimate or that anyone is attempting to steal it. Trump must stop undermining the integrity of our democratic process unless he has conclusive evidence to support his claims. There is no evidence of widespread election fraud. Instances of fraud may be discovered — as they are every election — but Trump is acting irresponsibly .
Elected officials in Colorado should use their platform to denounce even the implication that there are a great deal of illegal votes being counted. We’ve been disappointed by the silence from some Republicans and encouraged by the outspoken opposition from other Republicans, including former Gov. Bill Owens.
There is a bit of a mess in Pennsylvania. But it is a mess that can and will be sorted out. There’s no need to stop counting votes. There is no evidence of fraud or as Republicans like to say on Twitter right now “illegal votes” being counted.
The big question in Pennsylvania is whether votes that arrived after election day will be counted. It’s our understanding that the ballots that were postmarked by election day and arrived by Friday will be counted, but kept separate from other ballots in case the U. S. Supreme Court upholds the Trump administration’s lawsuit. The secretary of state reported that there are a small number of these ballots.
In Wisconsin, the Supreme Court ruled before the election that mail- in ballots had to arrive before or on Election Day to be counted. “Elections must end sometime, a single deadline supplies clear notice, and requiring ballots be in by Election Day puts all voters on the same footing,” Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote.
In Colorado, ballots must be received on or before election day. Gorsuch is correct that it puts all voters on the same footing and creates a clear deadline.
But let’s all be clear — because the president is intentionally trying to muddy the waters — those votes in Pennsylvania may or may not be cast out, but no one is trying to steal this election. Those are not “illegal votes.” Likely they are votes cast by procrastinators who simply put their ballots in the mail too late. If those votes aren’t counted, it’ll disenfranchise some voters, which is never good, but it is unlikely to change the outcome of this election.
Americans have a tough road ahead of us. Regardless of the outcome, we must try to accept the results and move forward.