Democrats’ Fraud-Friendly Election Rules Destroy Public Trust

Editor’s note: This is the fifth article in a series written by former Sen. Jim DeMint. Read the introduction here and the first four articles here, here, here, and here.

When Donald Trump was elected for his first term in 2016, a large majority of Democrats believed the election was rigged. When Joe Biden was elected in 2020, a large majority of Republicans believed the election was rigged. America is the world’s showcase democracy. Why can’t we have elections people can trust? I’m usually critical of both parties, but when it comes to election integrity, the Democrats are 100 percent of the problem.

Why are the Democrats to blame? The answer becomes obvious by asking a few simple questions. Why do Democrats oppose updated voter registration lists? Why do Democrats fight for laws that enable vote harvesting — sending activists out with stacks of ballots to be filled out with their assistance by people in housing projects, nursing homes, and targeted neighborhoods? Why do Democrats oppose in-person voting requirements and insist that unrequested ballots be mailed to all registered voters? Why do Democrats want ballots to be accepted after Election Day? Why do Democrats oppose voter ID and citizenship requirements?

The answers to these questions are revealing. On the voter registration lists of many states, as many as 10 percent to 20 percent of names listed represent people who have died or moved. It’s easy to put a few people in a room in key voting precincts and have them identify registered voters who are not going to vote — at least for themselves. It’s easy to imagine how ballots could be completed in their names, then bundled and dropped in an unsupervised drop box.

Another easy way to cheat is vote harvesting, in which the harvester completes a quantity of ballots and takes them to unlikely voters for their signatures — or forges their signatures. No wonder Democrats oppose signature verification.

In-person voting with ID requirements makes it very hard to cheat. Such guardrails prevent local party bosses from determining how many votes are needed and then delivering ballots to a drop box hours or even days after an election. Democrats oppose both.

Call me partisan, but you have to be blind not to see what’s going on here. Democrats need to cheat to win, and since most of the swing states are controlled by Democrats, often with the help of Democrat judges, it has been virtually impossible to create elections people can trust. Democrats respond to efforts to create honest elections with cries of racism and voter suppression. Proposals such as the SAVE Act in Congress would solve many of these problems, but almost all Democrats oppose it, and Republicans in the Senate have yet to show the courage to pass it.

The lack of election integrity in America is compounded by the lack of integrity in political service. This begins at the federal level with confusion about who our congressmen, senators, and presidents are supposed to serve. Every member of congress and president takes an oath to defend the Constitution. The Constitution is a directive from “We the People of the United States.” Federal officials, including our military, are in office to serve the people of the United States — not the people of their congressional district, states, noncitizens, special interests, or other countries. An oath to defend the Constitution is an oath to serve all the citizens of the United States.

Most congressmen and senators act like their job is to take money from the federal treasury back home to their states and congressional districts; get money and contracts for businesses in their states; or get money for special interests and designated constituent groups. They put thousands of earmarks in legislation that sends billions of dollars back to local projects in their states, claiming the Constitution gives Congress the authorization to spend federal tax dollars on anything they want. They recently even changed the name of “earmarks” to “Community Project Funding,” as if Congress is authorized to fund community projects. Nowhere in the Constitution is Congress given the authority to fund local community projects such as museums and buildings named after congressmen and senators.

For decades, congressmen and senators have been serving themselves and special interests instead of the “general welfare” of the nation. That’s why America is hopelessly in debt with no plans to reduce spending.

The Constitution begins with “We the people,” announcing a contract between American citizens and a newly established federal government. The name of our country, the United States, is more than symbolic. It is descriptive of a decentralized federation of states, not an all-controlling national government.

Policies and actions of the federal government must serve the citizens of the United States and the good of all the states. The phrase “America First,” popularized by President Trump, should be the goal of every federal official for all domestic and foreign policies. The Democrat Party has strongly resisted the Constitutional concept of serving American citizens first. They have demanded that illegal immigrants have a path to citizenship and — even before then — the rights of citizens, including the right to vote.

Democrat politicians — with some help from Republicans — have put global interests before American interests. This has resulted in unfair trade agreements, a lack of commitment to military strength, open borders and uncontrolled immigration, opposition to assimilation and resistance to English as America’s official language, the denigration of Judeo-Christian traditions and values, and the mockery of patriotism and love of country.  

Republicans must insist on policies that put America and its citizens first. This does not mean we do not engage with other countries. Our prosperity and quality of life depend on products, parts, and customers from all around the globe. And we can’t forget that the world is a dangerous place that contains countries and international institutions that would destroy America if they could. We must have a strong military and be willing to use it against countries and foreign groups that threaten our safety and interests.

A framework for good policy requires integrity in elections and political service. And this demands honest elections and politicians who serve the interest of citizens and our country first.