As voting and our Get Out the Vote efforts continue through this historic Election Day, we remain focused on winning but also stand prepared to take decisive action, if needed, to ensure that all votes are counted and the result honored.
Count Every Vote will be our mantra and, if needed, our rallying cry.
The result may not be known until some days or even weeks after Election Day. A number of battleground states do not start counting ballots until Election Day (PA, MI, WI, MN). Other states, like California, allow ballots postmarked by Election Day to be counted, provided they are received by a prescribed deadline (NC, NV, OH, TX). On top of all this, GOP lawsuits have raised questions as to exactly which ballots will be counted in Pennsylvania and other key states. Depending on which ballots are counted first, Trump may appear to have a lead on Election Night that the Biden-Harris ticket slowly overtakes in the following days or weeks.
Our vigorous, coordinated, and sustained action may be required to protect the results. We have seen that Trump and his enablers in the GOP will do their worst to disenfranchise voters where they believe it will benefit them. And, they’ve weakened the very institutions designed to safeguard our democracy.
The Santa Clara County Democratic Party will look to the national Democratic Party, the California Democratic Party, and the Biden-Harris campaign for guidance in any post-election controversy. In addition, we are in contact with the people and non-partisan groups that are organizing post-election actions in our area to ensure that every vote is counted.
Please continue to vote and to work with hope and optimism to help others to vote. We just might win this thing so decisively that we’ll have nothing left to do but celebrate our victory and prepare to support our Democratic leaders as they assume power. If not, though, we’ll work with like-minded progressive, labor, and faith organizations to ensure all votes are counted and the result honored. We’ll communicate information in a clear and timely manner to ensure each of us is engaged in the effort to protect the results of this election.
Democratically, Bill James
Santa Clara County Democratic Party Chair
