TODAY will be the last day of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) being held in Chicago, Illinois. And today will be the biggest day, the day when Kamala Harris formally accepts the nomination of the Democrats to be their candidate for President of the United States.
While she has already given the world a preview of much of what she will say in the stump speeches she has given over the last 30 days, her appearance at the convention will still be a much anticipated one with millions outside the United Arena watching on their television sets or streaming devices from anywhere in the world.
‘I wouldn’t like to imagine what the MAGA Republicans will resort to if they find themselves on the losing side.’
The Harris candidacy has transformed what was appearing to be a Trump victory over Joe Biden into what is shaping up to be a potentially tight race.
Because Americans elect their President via the Electoral College which assigns specific number of votes per state, and because most of the 50 states of the United States are considered safely or likely blue (Democrat) or red (Republican), political analysts are already saying, this early, that the election will be determined by the results in six or maybe seven states: Arizona, Nevada and Georgia, the so-called “Sunbelt” states, and Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania, the so-called “rust belt” states. To these six some analysts even include North Carolina.
A number of factors make states shift from blue to battleground to red or vice versa over time, but one of them is demographics. If a state’s population becomes less or more educated, becomes older or younger, becomes more urban or more rural, or becomes less or more white, then voting preferences shift accordingly.
And there’s no doubt that America’s demographics have been changing over the years.
But something has also changed over the years in America, and that is the growth of a significant segment of the population that has not been able to keep in step with the changes happening all around them in their communities, throughout the country, and throughout the world.
This disaffected segment of the population is where you find much of the anger and fear that is easily stoked during the election season. They become the breeding ground of conspiracy theories that weaken their faith in the economic and political system, and oftentimes the people caught up in this sentiment seek simple “solutions” — including a promise by Donald Trump to be “a dictator on Day One.”
This is why as a foreign observer watching the campaigns unfold from the security and safety of my Philippine residence, I can only wish that the elections result in an overwhelming victory by either side — although, of course, my prayers are for the blue states to multiply.
I say this because I fear, after the January 6, 2021 insurrection, that a close race where Trump loses will result in weeks of chaos and disorder because, as he has said time and again, he will only lose “if he is cheated.” And a close race will give him reason to amplify a claim that he was indeed cheated.
But it doesn’t seem to be shaping up that way. In fact, it could be so close that the winning candidate gets exactly 270 electoral votes while the loser gets only 268. I wouldn’t like to imagine what the MAGA Republicans will resort to if they find themselves on the losing side.
For America’s sake, and the world’s, what’s needed as we wake up on November 6 is a decisive victory at the US polls.
And I am hoping it will be Kamala for the win!
