By Mohammed Bello Doka.
Recently, United States of America, the world's self - acclaimed police, advocate of democracy and a supposed model of decency and moral unrighteousness issued a visa ban on selected Nigerian politicians whom they accuse of truncating democratic process in Nigeria.
In as much as the U.S. reserves the right to issue or deny Visa into their country to anyone based on any reason they deem fit, alas it is pertinent to apply the old saying or maxim that “He who comes with equity must come with clean hands.”
One will ponder, wonder and even reminisce on the decency and the moral unrighteousness of the American electoral process and, as the popular saying goes“ question everything, even your most cherished beliefs.”
It is in this light that I decide to question the self - acclaimed decency of the United States Democratic system and its supposed infallibility which confers legitimacy to America to act as the world police and an apostle of democracy across the globe, often using less than civilized approach they end up leaving sorrow tears and blood in less privileged countries raped by the almighty U.S. in the pursuit of democracy.
Recently, former United States President Donald Trump accused the American establishment of rigging the elections in favor of his Democratic rival, current President Joe Biden. Even though almost each institution in the U.S. denied the claims and frown at the mere notion that the world ideal model of democracy could be accused of corrupting the democratic process, yet a vast majority of Americans believe that the election was rigged, buying the Trump narration.
Some pro-American advocacy groups and the proponents of America's supremacy in decency, moral unrighteousness and flawlessness have even gone far to say that the American system of democracy is so perfect that rigging is impossible.
But taking a closer look at the fact and figures, one will find out the bitter truth that President Trump is not the first politician in the United States to raise allegations of election rigging in the system by the establishment or other interests.
A cursory look in history, one will find that, as claimed by Wikipedia “Contested elections in American history at the presidential level involve serious allegations by top officials that the election was “stolen.” Such allegations appeared in 1824, 1876, 1912, 1960,2000, and 2020. Typically, the precise allegations have changed over time.
1800 Confusion
1824 Jackson Denounces “Corrupt Bargain”
1876: The Result is Still Disputed
1912: Roosevelt Attacks Taft
2000: Election Depends on Florida
2020: Trump Claims His Victory Was "Stolen" - Wikipedia
Even though the western media tries as much as possible to suppress the history of election rigging in the American electoral process, there are at least three Wikipedia entries that acknowledged over a dozen cases of electoral fraud from 1800 to 2020. One of such elections includes but not limited to “One of the most disputed and controversial presidential elections in American history between the Democratic Party's candidate Samuel J. Tilden and the Republican Party's candidate Rutherford B. Hayes was resolved by the Compromise of 1877, which allowed Hayes to become president in exchange for the end of Reconstruction and the withdrawal of all federal troops stationed in the South after the American Civil War. Although it is generally agreed that Tilden won a majority of the popular vote, the results of the electoral vote continue to be disputed.”
Again “1912: Roosevelt Attacks Taft
In 1908, President Theodore Roosevelt made sure the Republicans Party nominated his close friend William Howard Taft for president. Taft won, however Roosevelt was dissatisfied and challenged Taft for the 1912 nomination. Roosevelt accused Taft of "stealing " the Republican nomination. Roosevelt thereupon ran a third party ticket, allowing Democrat Woodrow Wilson to win. According to Lewis L. Gould,
Roosevelt saw Taft as the agent of "the forces of reaction and of political crookedness"....Roosevelt had become the most dangerous man in American history, said Taft, "because of his hold upon the less intelligent voters and the discontented." The Republican National Committee, dominated by the Taft forces, awarded 235 delegates to the president and 19 to Roosevelt, thereby ensuring Taft's renomination....Firm in his conviction that the nomination was being stolen from him, Roosevelt....told cheering supporters that there was "a great moral issue" at stake...."Fearless of the future; unheeding of our individual fates; with unflinching hearts and undimmed eyes; we stand at Armageddon, and we battle for the Lord!"- Wikipedia
Also “1876: The Result is Still Disputed
In 1876, Republican Rutherford B. Hayes awarded the White House by a partisan special Congressional commission. The result remains among the most disputed to this day. Although it is not disputed that Democrat Samuel J. Tilden outpolled Hayes in the popular vote, there were wide allegations of electoral fraud, election violence, and other disfranchisement of predominantly Republican Black voters. After a first count of votes, Tilden had won 184 electoral votes to Hayes's 165, with 20 votes from four states unresolved. In Florida, Louisiana, and South Carolina, both parties reported their candidate to have won the state. In Oregon, one elector was replaced after being declared illegal for having been an "elected or appointed official." The question of who should have been awarded those 20 electoral votes remains in dispute among historians, with most suggesting the Republicans were guilty."
And most recently ”2000 United States presidential election - After a close election in which the winner was unclear, the Republican candidate George W. Bush won Florida by such a slim margin that a recount of the votes was triggered under Florida state law, beginning a series of legal battles between Bush and the Democratic candidate Al Gore and considerable public controversy. After the completion of a machine recount, the Florida Supreme Court ordered a manual recount due to continued concerns over the validity of the election. The case was appealed to the Supreme Court, which halted the recount in the Bush v. Gore and Bush v. Palm Beach County Canvassing Board decisions, which Bush to win Florida by a 0.009 percent margin and the electoral vote."
The issues of vote manipulation, rigging and outright distortion is not limited to the federal elections similar cases in Governorship and Senate elections were recorded most prominent include but not limited to "2002 Alabama gubernatorial election - Although the incumbent Democratic Governor Don Siegelman was initially declared the winner by a close majority, the Republican candidate Bob Riley ultimately won after a recount in Baldwin County without the presence of Democratic observers.
2002 New Hampshire Senate election phone jamming scandal[32] - During the 2002 United States Senate election in New Hampshire, the New Hampshire Republican State Committee hired a telemarketing firm to jam the phone bank used by the Democratic Party in a "get out the vote" operation. The Republican candidate John E. Sununu won a narrow victory over the Democratic candidate Jeanne Shaheen, while James Tobin was later charged for lying to the FBI.
2004 United States presidential election : The certification of Republican electors in Ohio were legally challenged. Representative John Conyers investigated voter suppression, culminating in his report What went wrong in Ohio. Several independent election-denying researchers including Bob Fitrakis, Mark Crispin Miller, Steven F. Freeman, Richard Hayes Phillips and Richard Charnin published books claiming that Bush won the election due to Electoral fraud and Voter suppression.
2004 Washington gubernatorial election - After a close election in which the Republican candidate Dino Rossi was declared the winner in the initial election and the machine count, the Democratic candidate Christine Gregoire was declared the winner after a manual recount. Rossi made an unsuccessful legal challenge to the results, and did not officially concede the election for seven months.
2008 United States Senate election in Minnesota - Republican incumbent Norm Coleman initially led against the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party candidate Al Franken, but the close margin triggered a mandatory recount under Minnesota state law; Franken was ultimately declared the winner by the Minnesota State Canvassing Board."
From the above, it can be inferred that the American electoral process is far from flawless, far from ideal and far from perfect. As for the proponents of the perfection of the system and its infallibility I have this final question" If America accepted the fact that Russia can meddle in its 2014 elections and influence the results in favor of the Trumps Grand Old Party to spite the Democrat why do they think that the American system is infallible and impossible to be rigged against Trump in 2020?”
I repeat, those who come with equity must come with clean hands, the United States should focus more on entrenching democratic principles in its domain than poke nosing in other countries' internal affairs if the principle of equality between nations is anything to go by.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_controversial_elections
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electoral_fraud#:~:text=Electoral%20fraud%2C%20sometimes%20referred%20to,of%20rival%20candidates%2C%20or%20both
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contested_elections_in_American_history#:~:text=Contested%20elections%20in%20American%20history%20at%20the%20presidential%20level%20involve,allegations%20have%20changed%20over%20time
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