America went to the polls to vote in a national election on Tuesday, November 3, 2020. At the top of the ticket was the race for the Presidency between the top 2 major party candidates, Donald J. Trump and Joseph R. Biden. Biden was declared the winner by news organizations, per tradition, on Saturday after mail-in ballots had been counted and recounted and had won by an insurmountable lead.
Joe Biden won the popular vote by 5+ million votes (and counting), the military vote by nearly 10 points, flipped 5 states that Trump had won in 2016 (Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Georgia, Arizona) won the highest majority of votes in the US (An estimated 51-52%) since FDR in 1932 and won the highest total number of votes in US History at 80+ million (and counting). While these statistics all favored Biden, the only count that matters in Presidential politics is who wins the Electoral College. Biden won 306 electoral votes to Donald Trump’s 232. (Coincidentally, in 2016 Donald Trump won the Electoral College vote with exactly 306. His campaign manager, Kellanne Conway, tweeted in 2016 when Trump reached 306 votes: “306. Landslide. Blowout. Historic”).
Donald Trump, who lost the election still refuses to officially concede. This is unprecedented in American history. Not only has Trump refused to concede, but he has also tweeted numerous times and stated on camera that the election was rigged and based on fraudulent and illegal votes. He has also claimed he can still win the election (he can’t) and that he will win the election by taking it to court. (To date he has lost 19 out of 20 cases defended by lawyers like Marc Elias that have shut down Trump’s complaints of fraud or illegality.) Although the votes have not been officially certified, it is clear that Joe Biden is the winner in a race that was not even close and that Biden is the President-Elect. World leaders are treating Biden as the 46th President and have called to wish him congratulations, even close allies of Trump’s like Boris Johnson of the UK and Bibi Netanyahu of Israel. Yet, Trump and his administration continue to claim voter fraud and that Trump is the real president. Trump has incited his followers on Twitter saying that he was robbed and that Biden cheated. No proof of this exists.
What looks like Trump being a sore loser is far worse than that. Trump is making a mockery of the peaceful transition of power from one political opponent to another. Biden is the clear winner of an open, free, and fair election. The smooth transition of power between presidents is a hallmark of a functioning democracy. What Trump is trying to deny and to claim is something done by rulers of fascist and autocratic nations. It not only hurts Biden and the United States, but it also damages the strength of democracy across the globe. Daniel I. Weiner of the Brennan Center writes that Trump’s refusal to concede and his insistence on casting doubt on the election results is incredibly dangerous. “The spectacle of an incumbent president behaving this way is something we haven’t seen before and is deeply corrosive to our democracy.” The symbolism of graciously conceding and handing over power is important and shows Americans and the world that we are a peaceful nation that respects democracy. It is also a practical issue. One administration hands over power peacefully and willingly so the next administration can hire people, brief them, and prepare to govern and lead. Our Constitution says almost nothing about presidential transitions but following the norm of a smooth transition of power has kept us peaceful and has kept democracy strong.
While Trump is a showman and sometimes a buffoon, we should not ignore his crazy press conferences or tweets and excuse them as being “just Trump.” They are damaging American democracy and could lead to violence in the streets from his supporters. It is critical that his party stand up and openly state that Biden is the President-Elect and, once Inauguration Day comes, that Trump will no longer be President. The future of democracy may depend on it.