US ELECTION
There’s been a political storm rolling through the 2020 election in the US. Voter turnout and mail-in ballots have seen record figures. The pandemic is still raging and Trump has warned he might not concede defeat when all the votes are counted.
Announcing the winner
This election has been different from any other for obvious and ambiguous reasons. Issues such as the pandemic situation and record highs at
polling stations have set this election apart. This resulted in the long-standing American tradition of calling the winner on election night, not taking place. Nevertheless, it shouldn't really perplex too many people as we have seen this occurrence before, in the 2000 election. Back then, there wasn’t any serious suggestion that the election might have been rigged or that there that riots would ensue on the streets. Everyone felt comfortable that both George W Bush and Al Gore would fight fairly however it played out. The difference this year is American society doesn't have the nerve or the patience to wait longer. The peace has been broken and extreme emotions have been stoked by unsubstantiated allegations of voting fraud. Unfortunately, because of the pandemic and record turnout, it might take a while to find out who won so it's important to remember that's normal and nothing irregular. For the official result, the counting could take days so it's going to be important to remain calm and not pay too much attention to anyone that does not.
polling stations have set this election apart. This resulted in the long-standing American tradition of calling the winner on election night, not taking place. Nevertheless, it shouldn't really perplex too many people as we have seen this occurrence before, in the 2000 election. Back then, there wasn’t any serious suggestion that the election might have been rigged or that there that riots would ensue on the streets. Everyone felt comfortable that both George W Bush and Al Gore would fight fairly however it played out. The difference this year is American society doesn't have the nerve or the patience to wait longer. The peace has been broken and extreme emotions have been stoked by unsubstantiated allegations of voting fraud. Unfortunately, because of the pandemic and record turnout, it might take a while to find out who won so it's important to remember that's normal and nothing irregular. For the official result, the counting could take days so it's going to be important to remain calm and not pay too much attention to anyone that does not.
Accepting the results/Rigged election
It is okay that we didn’t have a result on election night and it doesn't mean that there has been tampering or that the election itself has been rigged. Sowing seeds of doubt and questioning the result fuels the fire of unrest among certain social groups. To make the situation even worse, Donald Trump has signalled that he doesn't think there's any way he could lose a fair election and he might not accept the result. A scenario, in which Trump flatly refuses to accept defeat, launches the USA into uncharted territory. So many institutional norms have been violated by this president enabled by the republicans and it's hard to believe that they would all of a sudden now step up and decide that this is a bridge too far. Fortunately, his refusal to concede defeat doesn’t result in an extended presidency.
Riots
It has been a slow process to count all the votes and the White House has been shouting fraud the whole time but that does not make it a crisis. The mere fact of declaring that the elections were rigged doesn't change much. The biggest threat is the high expectation of armed unrest across the whole country. Trump has not condemned the violence or the right-wing militias that are rising in numbers. He's done the complete opposite! During the lockdown, he was encouraging people to take up arms to quote “liberate their states”. The word insurrection has been ubiquitous. Trump suggested that liberals are arming themselves so they should too, and be prepared to fight for this country and that somehow engaging in violence is patriotic These is really dangerous rhetoric and inflammatory language that should not be coming from the POTUS or anyone at such a high level Conclusion By the time this "article" has been published, many things may have changed. It is an historical event that we can observe in real time, and we should draw conclusions from other countries' mistakes.
Questions
1. Do you think that election could've been rigged?
2. Which president would be more beneficial to Poland?
3. Do you think armed unrest may take place on US streets?
Image source: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/16/opinion/trump-biden-town-halls.html?searchResultPosition=2
Comments
In my opinion it's no chance that the election could've been rigged. Biden won in fair combat but it's hard for Donald Trump to accept his failure.
2. Which president would be more beneficial to Poland?
It depends. Trump would be better for "Poland" in meaning for government. But for people in my opinion Biden is going to be a better choice. Biden cares about democration, environments and rule of law which are endangered in Poland by our lovely government.
3. Do you think armed unrest may take place on US streets?
I don't think so. Biden is a smart guy, he'll handle with unrest. Additionally, it's pandemic time. USA faces with problems with medical security and unemployment. These troubles are more relevant than an old president who couldn't deal with epidemic
That's very unlikely in such a democratic country as the us is. I think that some interference could have occured 4 years ago from the Russians, but not this time.
2.
I doubt that any would, to be honest. Trump has lifted visas for Polish citizens, not sure if he would do anything apart that.
3.
I don't think so. A lot of times in the history of United States the president was a democrat and there were no riots because of that as far as I know.
Most of the time so called "establishment", steers the narrative and people's minds(ie. through media, populism) so that they eventually choose "right" candidate :)
Certainly, anomalies happen and more controversial persona can sometimes get elected, but in the long run they can't hold office in this system.
I don't like to think about which US president would be more beneficial for us.
Our country needs to be strong enough to disregard elections in other countries, as much as possible.
In the end, would common Polish citizen notice the difference, regardless of who was elected?
Unless president will satisfy demands of the rioters, they will continue their campaign.
I don't believe Biden would use force to quell the movement, especially given the fact that he declared his allegiance to their cause.
But in the absence of government reaction, people have taken arms to protect their cities, which restores hope :)
Thanks for input!
I was trying to ask if the armed unrest might take place before Joe Biden gets to be a president, not after he takes the office!
Thanks one more time for the comment!
"I doubt that any would, to be honest. Trump has lifted visas for Polish citizens, not sure if he would do anything apart that."
Don't you think that US military presence has increased in recent years? There were plenty of things that might be considered as beneficial for Poland. You don't think that these are important? If no, why?
In my opinion, there is no possibility that the elections were rigged. I believe that Biden won fairly
2. Which president would be more beneficial to Poland?
I'm not interested in politics enough to know that, from what I've heard on TV, Trump would be a better president for Poland. However, it is difficult for me to comment on this subject in more detail
3. Do you think armed unrest may take place on US streets?
In my opinion, no, however, I do not keep an eye on the situation in the USA. However, it seems to me that there will be no such events. I hope so.
People like to think up conspiracies and such strange phenomena work for their advantage.
2. I think that Trump would be better. Economic results in the USA affect Polish economics, so it would be good if Trump could continue his practices which were positive when it comes to finances. Also, Trump was in good relations with the current Polish government, which is for sure positive, because we still have more than 2 years till the elections, and cooperating with the global leader might be helpful. Biden is more likely to be against, let's say, a bit authoritarian politics which happens in Poland. I can't say what could be the consequences and if Joe Biden would somehow influence, but we may expect some changes in our relations with the USA. BTW. I've seen a comment about Trump who abolished the visas for Polish citizens - actually, he didn't. There were simply criteria, which we fulfilled. It was not his move.
3. Yes, I think we may have a situation similar to the one we had in previous elections in the USA, but from the opposite side. There might be some protests but let's hope they will be less violent than BLM protests were.
Certainly, these election was controversial. But as I wrote on this blog before, since the method of postal voting was legally approved, it must be considered that election was legal. This is not the first time that the US elections have been controversial, similar, or maybe even more emotional, caused the 2001 election, when in fact George W. Bush lost the election and eventually became president.
2. Which president would be more beneficial to Poland?
It seems to me that Poles are treated by the USA as rich losers. In recent years, Poles have become heavily dependent on the USA, we buy gas from them, we buy weapons, we buy telecommunications infrastructure, we want to be the US stronghold in Europe. Unfortunately, we overpay for all these things, and that's quite a lot. Hence, the USA treats us not as a partner but as a good customer. It seems to me that Joe Biden may be a better president for us, because maybe he will pay attention to the fact that Poland is slowly ceasing to be a democratic country.
3. Do you think armed unrest may take place on US streets?
No, I don't think there will be riots. Rather, if it does, they will be relatively peaceful demonstrations. It would have been different if Donald J. Trump had won the election. I think then it could be very dangerous.
I'm not an expert, but our government made a few deals with the USA (with Trump). Joe Biden doesn't look at Poland as an allay but rather as an undemocratic country like Hungary. Probably Trump would be better for us in the current situation.
I don't think that there will be riots. Also, there's a pandemic and most people don't gather in crowds.
2. Trump, of course. Trump and PiS get along well. Additionally, Trump wants the collapse of the EU, which is in line with the views of the Polish government.
3. Looking at what is happening in the US recently, it is possible, but due to the pandemics, I think there will be no major riots.
As any election that isn't made using software, yeah, it could. There is an old phrase, "It's not so important how people vote, more important is how people count." And I think rigging has an impact on all elections. Question is how much.
2. Which president would be more beneficial to Poland?
Well, I don't know, I'm Ukrainian. But even if I were a Polish citizen, do you think, I would be able to predict it? Well, quite optimistic. However, even if there will be any benefits, they will be a by-product of the main goals of any of them.
3. Do you think armed unrest may take place on US streets?
Never say never. They may and they may not. You can't know when everything will blow up, and the chaos will begin. Also, you can't believe in people's sense of reason, cause one day we started the SECOND World War.
I can't think of any way that US election could've been rigged. Donald Trump just can't accept defeat, and that's all.
2. Which president would be more beneficial to Poland?
I don't know actually. I'm not interested enough in politics to know how different US presidents could benefit Poland.
3. Do you think armed unrest may take place on US streets?
I don't know, I think it's unlikely, but still there's a possibilty.
I think that on a small scale there were some incidents, but overall I don't believe that they could've been rigged but either Republicans, Democrats or some outer side.
2. Which president would be more beneficial to Poland?
For Polish government Trump would be better, but I believe that for Poles in general Biden is going to be more beneficial, but not by a large margin. He seems like someone who cares about some core values of democracy like separation of powers, minority rights, women's rights etc., that current Polish government doesn't care about that much.
3. Do you think armed unrest may take place on US streets?
I don't think so. There will be some protests, but I don't believe they will be significant. In my opinion they won't be bigger than the BLM protests.