On Election Day, Facts Can Defeat Fear

You’re read­ing The Brief­ing, Michael Wald­­­­­man’s weekly news­­­­­­­­­let­ter. Click here to receive it in your inbox.

For more than a year, this newsletter has reported on President Trump’s drive to undermine the midterms. Those warnings were justified, but we’re increasingly seeing something more encouraging: victory after victory for voters. Trump’s efforts are failing. Citizens can cast ballots with confidence.  

When I tell people this, they are surprised. Skeptical. Sometimes a bit angry. Waldman, have you gone soft? 

Hardly. There are still two weeks to go, and we are vigilant and working ferociously hard. I’m confident because I know just how many people across the country have been preparing for this moment, all to make sure that voters are protected and have their say. 

“This year,” my colleague Jasleen Singh tells me, “hundreds of thousands of people are volunteering and getting trained as poll monitors to keep our election safe. Faith groups are organizing training programs for clergy to deescalate any disruptions. And it’s not just them. Stakeholders from business, health, science, labor, and youth sectors are also in the mix, preparing for threats and planning how to educate their sectors and encourage civic engagement.” 

Mobilizing these thousands are venerable groups such as the League of Women Voters and Common Cause, newer mobilization organizers, Latino groups, and Black civic organizations. Many work together under the umbrella of the Election Safeguards Response Network, a national coalition where the Brennan Center plays a key role.  

That’s not to say that everything about our elections next month will be perfectly fair. The Supreme Court has unleashed partisan gerrymandering wars and discriminatory maps designed to dilute the power of voters of color. Many states have enacted new restrictive voting laws. Congress will have much to do to improve our democracy after the election.  

But on Election Day, facts can defeat fear. When rumors fly and AI-generated deepfakes proliferate, activists are prepared to share accurate information as fast as possible. They’ve learned from the ICE Watch efforts in places like Minneapolis. They know to share information and images with 866-OUR-VOTE.  

State election officials have prepared, too. They have participated unrelentingly in trainings and tabletop exercises, working with cyber experts to guard against hacking. Law enforcement has stepped up. Thanks to the Committee for Safe and Secure Elections, which we founded, police in all 50 states will be carrying pocket guides on Election Day telling them how to protect the vote.  

And there are — I know this will thrill you all — lots and lots of lawyers ready for a fight. If ICE deploys to the polls, we are ready to sue. Indeed, voting rights groups and unions already are in court for fast action should it be necessary.  

I worked in politics for many years and as a voting rights advocate for many more. I have never seen a mobilization like this — not for a candidate or a party, but for the freedom to vote itself. The Trump administration’s anti-voter campaign is unprecedented. So is the response. 

We will be working nonstop until Election Day and beyond. Every day there are new outrages: A federal demand that California reject votes from people whose names appear on a mysterious thumb drive, an ultimatum issued after millions of ballots already have been sent out. The ominous shutdown by Facebook of the organizing page for the No Kings voter mobilization day. No doubt more will come. After the election, we may see wild claims, challenges, and recounts in tight races. 

But the overwhelming story of this election, right now, is the millions of people who are making their voices heard. Already, more than 12 million Americans have voted, and 58 million have requested ballots. Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-GA) put it this way: “A vote is a kind of prayer for the world we desire for ourselves and for our children.” Cathartic and joyous, this is the moment when ordinary people can speak back to power.