Pre-Midterm Fears of Election Denialism Overblown

In yet another sign of President Trump’s waning influence, most of the candidates aligned with him who lost their races in last week’s midterm elections are rejecting the ex-president’s playbook and taking their losses in stride.Despite Democrats’ loud warnings to the contrary before the election, few results were contested or denied in the aftermath of the vote. For months leading up to the election, Democrats expressed concerns about election denialism that are — for the most part — not materializing.In an address before the elections, President Biden estimated that as many as 300 so-called election deniers — those who questioned the results of the 2020 presidential election — were on ballots across the country.“Democracy is at risk,” Mr. Biden warned, alleging that Trumpist Republicans would not accept the outcome of their contests. “Extreme MAGA Republicans aim to question not only the legitimacy of past elections but elections being held now and into the future.”The president urged Americans to vote only for candidates they believe would accept results regardless of whether they won or lost. Yet those who supported Mr. Trump’s claims that the 2020 election was stolen have largely abstained from making the same claims about the 2022 results — even when they lost.Pennsylvania’s Douglas Mastriano, widely viewed as one of the most extreme candidates of this election cycle and often criticized for being present during the January 6, 2021, riots at the U.S. Capitol, conceded to his Democratic opponent, Governor-elect Joshua Shapiro.“Difficult to accept as the results are, there is no right course but to concede, which I do,” Mr. Mastriano wrote in a statement released Sunday, five days after most media outlets had called the race. He noted that the state was “in great need of election reform” but stopped short of delegitimizing the results.To much fanfare among his supporters and much consternation among his detractors, Mr. Trump also attempted to get a slate of MAGA-friendly candidates elected to strategic positions for election administration and certification in several key battleground states.In Michigan, Nevada, and Arizona, Mr. Trump’s picks for secretaries of state all lost — and they have refused to concede. Kristina Karamo of Michigan and Mark Finchem of Arizona have said they plan to challenge the results.The former president’s pick for secretary of state in the Grand Canyon State, Mr. Finchem, tweeted Monday his refusal to concede. The Associated Press called the race for his opponent on Friday, but Arizona will not release its official election results until certification on December 5, according to its secretary of state’s office.“We are not conceding and are fighting,” Mr. Finchem wrote Monday afternoon. Much of his feed over recent days has been dedicated to highlighting alleged election missteps in Arizona.Arizona is the state where the fears of election denialism may yet materialize. Even as their path to victory narrows — or in some cases disappear — the Republican candidates in statewide elections have refused to concede.The state is an easy target because of its slow voter tabulation, exacerbated by technical errors on Election Day.In Maricopa County, the state’s most populated county, about a quarter of polling places reported issues with voting tabulators. The problem was eventually resolved and workarounds — such alternative polling places — were offered in the meantime. The Washington Post, however, reported that the problematic precincts were more likely to be centers of Democratic support.The GOP gubernatorial candidate, Kari Lake, has criticized the state for its “incompetency or maladministration.” Ms. Lake is in a tight race with Democrat Kathleen Hobbs, who is leading by one percentage point with 93 percent of the vote in.On Monday, Mr. Trump took to his social media platform, Truth Social, to accuse Arizona of draining “the great Kari Lake’s easy election win.” This followed his Saturday claim of “scam and voter fraud” in the statewide vote.Senator Kelly is projected to hold on to his Senate seat, defeating the Peter Theil-associated Republican, Blake Masters, who was endorsed by Mr. Trump. Mr. Masters rejected media projections of the race’s outcome with more than 90 percent of the vote counted, and said he will not concede until “every legal vote is counted.” He has promised to concede to Mr. Kelly if the outcome of the final tally has his opponent up.Mr. Trump wrote Saturday that Arizona “stole the Electron from Blake Masters.”

Pre-Midterm Fears of Election Denialism Overblown

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