Election Fraud and the Myths of American Democracy
Andrew Gumbel · Social research · 2008
th a t followed over the pivotal state of Florida, opened the eyes of many Americans to a reality they had, up to tha t point, largely chosen to ignore: tha t their electoral system was—in at least some parts of the country—decrepit, poorly managed, lacking transparency, or clear procedural rules, and prone to corruption, political manipulation, and outright fraud. The battle for Florida was a highly partisan fight, interpreted in wildly different ways by Republicans and Democrats. Both sides, however, had ample reason to question the integrity of the system. Republicans who believed George W. Bush had won fair and square understood that the ambiguities and mechanical shortcomings of the punch-card ballots used in the bigger urban counties—all those semi detached, dimpled, hanging, and pregnant chad m uch scrutinized and discussed on the cable television news channels—were in and of them selves destabilizing, because they gave their opponents an opportunity