Republicans cheat to win elections

If we come out and vote, like we did twice for Obama and in 2018 in the “Blue Wave” midterm, then we win. There are more of us than there are of them, and we represent what the majority of Americans want.

They know that. And so they know that the only way they can win is by cheating. And that’s why the Republican party has worked so hard (especially over the past twenty years) to do the following:

Purge voting rolls of registered voters for no real reason
Make it harder to register
Gerrymander districts to allow them to win even when they get less votes overall
Fight against mail-in ballots
Remove the Voting Rights Act
Refuse to pass legislation to prevent Russian hacking of voting machines
Refuse to pass legislation requiring paper ballots
Removing voting precincts in minority-held districts
Pass ID laws that make it more difficult if not impossible for some people to vote
Fight against early voting laws
Restricting those with criminal records from voting
Creating an atmosphere of fear at the precincts (especially for Latinos who worry about being detained for voting, even if they are citizens)
Refusing to consider getting rid of the Electoral College

You’d think the most basic right in a democracy would be the right to vote, and you’d think anyone who really supports democracy would want everyone to vote. But the history of America has constantly been one of the people in power doing everything they can to prevent that from happening, starting with the establishment of the Electoral College. Women and non-whites had to fight and die for this very basic right, and the battle continues today.

Ohio is a lot like Pennsylvania in that the Republicans have gerrymandered the state so much that even though more Democrats vote in the state than Republicans, the GOP wins the vast majority of seats.

This isn’t democracy. This isn’t “one man, one vote.” They’re not winning by having a majority agree with them or want them in there. This is winning by rewriting the rules in your favor.

Fortunately, Ohio has a ballot measure that would require a bipartisan council to fix the districts (like California has done). Let’s hope it passes.

It’s time the Supreme Court held that gerrymandering violates the Constitution by preventing proper representation. We need impartial committees using computer-generated models. Seriously, we have the programs to do it now. A computer just looks at population and natural barriers and makes districts compact and reasonable. (Here, look at these examples).

But this is the Republican way of winning elections these days. You create districts that disenfranchise Democrats; you pass “voter protection” laws that keep them from voting; and you get the courts to declare that secret unlimited money is “free speech”.

“Republicans will do everything they can to win elections except get the most votes.” – Bill Maher