World News – UA – The curse of postal voting: how this contested US election turned into a horror show – CityAM

For several months now, good man of political risk that I am, I have worried aloud in these pages with growing fear about the 2020 US Presidential Election

There are times when you hate being right to make correct politically risky calls The debacle of the Iraq war surely was such an opportunity for me

Because beyond the polarized politics of the moment in the United States, something more mundane – the process by which the elections themselves take place – have been of great concern to me I called it, here and in other thoughts, the curse of mail-in voting And like a horror movie, after last night’s shocking, albeit partial, presidential results, this curse is hitting us now It will be devastating for America, no matter what be the result

The facts that led to this overwhelmingly correct political risk appeal have all advanced like a nightmare.Due to understandable fears of the coronavirus, many Americans have decided to vote by mail rather than in person – around 50%, against 25% in 2016

Disproportionately, these voters are Democrats In five battlefield states, 52% of those who requested mail-in ballots identified themselves as Democrats, 28% being Republicans and 20% independents. , this grouping of votes is a potentially decisive factor in any tight race

In the three key Midwestern battlefield states of Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin, all don’t start counting postal votes until after polling stations in their states have closed (an idea of ​​course. stupid) and usually after in-person votes, making for an endless process that, in a tight race, stokes the flames of political uncertainty This seemingly innocuous procedural reality has led the American Republic straight into the jaws of disaster

Now we come to last night’s results Against all odds, Donald Trump managed to (almost) run the gamut of must-see states, keeping his wacky re-election hopes alive Although Trump appears to have lost Arizona, he won every other throw he absolutely needed to have, including Florida and Ohio, and most likely North Carolina and Georgia.

Ultimately, former Vice President Joe Biden has around 244 electoral votes and Trump 247, with 270 needed and with just the three Midwestern states in play

As of this morning, thanks to the votes of those who have done it in person, Trump is leading in the three According to Real Clear Politics Reports, with 70% of the vote counted in Michigan, he holds an 8% lead The same story is true in absolutely vital Pennsylvania, where with 75% of the votes counted, the president is up 13% In Wisconsin, with almost all votes counted (96%), Trump is also in the lead, though by the smallest margin of 4%

It is at this point that the history of our postal voting process collides with political reality, entailing the greatest political risk

Mail-in votes in all three states counted last In every state Trump has a seemingly hefty lead, but one that, given the voting rules we’ve discussed, would inevitably have to be reduced The president has already, in his devastating, unfounded and paranoid speech last night, accused (in the absence of facts) that the electoral process is rigged and that Democrats are ready to steal the election.

These baseless accusations, causing immense damage to the reputation of the republic itself, come even before Trump’s leadership is inevitably reduced Imagine the president’s rhetorical behavior as the process progresses

If Trump wins election, he committed the most serious act of self-harm, questioning his own tenure If Trump starts losing, look for an endless string of court challenges, taking weeks and heading for a polarized Supreme Court, fundamentally discrediting an administration of either before it even takes office.

Ironically, all of this makes it clear that the real winner of the 2020 vote is: Xi Jinping from China President Xi’s speech to Asia and the rest of the world, that a declining America is increasingly unstable , polarized, involved and inept (as in ‘America can’t even run an election’) is very likely to take on a whole new significance after the contested 2020 Presidential Race

Times are changing rapidly America’s political self-harm begins to cause it – and its allies – long-term and irreparable damage

City AMThe opinion pages of are a place for reflection and debate These points of view are not necessarily shared by the city AM

US Presidential Election, Donald Trump