“A majority [51%] of Republican nominees on the ballot this November for the House, Senate and key statewide offices — 291 in all — have denied or questioned the outcome of the last presidential election,” according to The Washington Post.
For Idaho readers, this includes both Congressional representatives (Russ Fulcher and Mike Simpson) as well as Gov. Brad Little. Washington has six election-denying candidates for the House, including Cathy McMorris Rodgers. As most of these races are not competitive, it seems our elections will soon be overseen by people who believe that elections are only legitimate when they win — which is to say, we’ll have democratically elected leaders who don’t believe in democracy.
While this is clearly outrageous, it seems we’ve become numb to outrage over the past decade and now worry more about the price of gas than the loss of our ideals. Fortunately, most of these politicians probably don’t actually believe The Big Lie and merely use it to whip up their credulous base. Like politicians in every era, they’re less stupid than they are completely lacking in moral fiber (though this level of cynicism is hardly better than if they were deluded). After all, if they truly believed their own claims, they’d be proposing solutions to fix our electoral system. The fact that they don’t strongly suggests that they can’t because doing so would require pinpointing a problem that doesn’t exist.
While many MAGA devotees do truly believe The Big Lie, the truth or falsity of it has never been the point. Republican politicians can “believe” The Big Lie even while knowing it’s a fabrication because it’s not a statement of fact — it’s a declaration of loyalty. It’s a way of demonstrating that their commitment to the party and its leader supersedes even their commitment to truth, logic and reality. Delegitimizing sources of information not controlled by the party is a hallmark of authoritarian thinking, which consolidates power by substituting easily manipulated myths for reality, thus ensuring that their followers only have access to one way of thinking. The success of this strategy can be seen in the cult-like enthusiasm of member of the MAGA movement and their immunity to facts. For them, truth is a matter of shared belief, not the product of observation, evidence or reason.
This is why The Big Lie — like any conspiracy — cannot be debunked. Liberals endlessly point out that there is nothing to support allegations of election fraud in spite of enormous efforts to find some, but it falls on deaf ears. What makes conspiracies so obstinate is their ability to absorb any and all evidence to the contrary. The lack of evidence of fraud just becomes part of the conspiracy.
For the GOP politicians who know better, accusations of voter fraud are nothing but a façade to justify suppressing votes in the name of “protecting democracy” and rigging the electoral machinery to make it “secure.” It’s Orwellian double-speak at its finest. As the existence of significant voter fraud is not supported by facts, evidence or logic, those who believe in it anyway are deliberately choosing a comforting fantasy over reality. And in this fantasy, there isn’t any way a Democrat can legitimately win an election because the fact that a Democrat won is itself evidence of fraud. This is how a democracy dies, if we allow it.
Of course, according to The Big Lie, those same Democrats in 2020 pulled off the most seamless and effective political coup in history, in broad daylight, under heavy scrutiny from Republicans who were expecting it, with the help of Republican officials, all without leaving a shred of credible evidence. Since it seems fairly obvious that, given their prior success, they’ll just do it again this time around, I’d like to suggest that our Republican friends not waste their time casting votes that won’t be counted anyway. Just sit this election cycle out. I mean, if you do vote you’re admitting that you still believe the system works and that The Big Lie is just that.
So, which is it? Admit the lie or don’t vote. What’s it going to be?
Urie is a lifelong Idahoan and graduate of the University of Idaho. He lives in Moscow with his wife and two children.
