Absurd Arizona Recount Underlines The Challenges To Democracy

Arizona
Arizona

Republicans in Arizona had announced an unprecedented ‘audit’ of the ballots cast in 2020 to prove massive rigging by the Democrats. But the exposure of fraud as promised by Donald Trump fell flat on its face. But it hasn’t affected the Republican delusions of victory.

The recounting in Arizona was led by an enthusiast of Donald Trump’s ‘stop the steal’ movement. The funds were raised by devoted partisans. It inspired Republican lawmakers in other states like Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Georgia, states that the Republicans had narrowly lost, to start similar efforts. But the promised restoration never happened, and with it, the rapture died down. But it had taken its toll on democracy.

The wild-goose chase wasted taxpayer money and made public confidential voter information. And in the end, all it proved was that President Biden had won by a greater margin.

But while the sham Arizona audit failed in its futile attempt to expose any hidden ghosts, it managed to set in motion the Republicans’ hidden agenda. They succeeded in casting doubt about the election system in the US. Undermined forever was the element of trust so integral to the American election process.

Arizona Audit Destroys An Ambience Of Trust

With the Arizona recounting, the Republicans succeeded in destroying the precedence that losers acknowledged the legitimacy of every winner.

The absurd Arizona audit conducted on the instigation of Trump will also undermine the credibility of genuine ones in the future. All future efforts at recounting or audit will be subject to attack by the Republicans drawing a parallel to the widespread denunciation of the sham Arizona audit.

It points to a total debasement of the American political system where one of the two major parties could attack the results of its elections and get away with it. In doing so, they have cast aspersions on the functioning of the whole democratic process.

But Republicans in Arizona continue to demand further audits. And it has spawned similar requests in closely contested states across the nation.

In Colorado, an election official sympathetic to the Republicans was behind a break-in that helped vigilantes steal data for a ballot review of their own. With each instance, the attempts get more brazen and give the Republicans more confidence in getting away with anything to stay in power.