Election denialism's impact on democracies at home and abroad

Despite repeated false claims by state politicians and their constituents that rampant voter fraud took place during the 2020 general election, out of the 5.5 million voters who cast ballots in North Carolina, only 70 of them were referred to prosecutors for suspected fraud, and not all were found guilty.

And yet the unverified accusations of massive cheating continue ahead of the midterms, raising doubts about the electoral process, fueling a rise in voter intimidation, record numbers of polling observers, and straining the capacities of elections boards across the state. 

On November 8, more than half of American voters will find an election denier on the ballot. Seven of those candidates are running for North Carolina seats in the U.S. House of Representatives. 

The 2020 electoral defeat of former President Donald Trump may have marked the beginning of the election denier movement in America, but it’s not a new phenomenon. It’s a tactic that’s been used for decades around the world to destabilize democratic governments and seize or retain political power.

Wake Forest University professor of politics and international affairs Peter Siavelis says these large-scale populist movements — both on the left and the right — hold a few things in common. They are anti-elite, anti-traditional party, and their goal is to undermine political institutions. 

“Sowing doubt about the electoral processes is a part of a bigger kind of movement towards the anti-establishment populist movements that we’re seeing all over the world and that we’re seeing right here right now,” says Siavelis. “[It’s] kind of like if the opposition is so bad, then there’s no way that they should be winning in the electoral arena. So, there must be something wrong.”

Siavelis says sustained accusations of election fraud also play into today’s politics of grievance. It’s a powerful mobilization tactic as well, getting angry voters to the polls.

He adds these short term goals of spreading misinformation play into long term goals: stoking polarization and objectifying the opposition party. 

“Then you arrive at a process of zero-sum politics,” he says. “We have to win absolutely because we have to make them lose absolutely. So, there’s no negotiation. There’s no effort at compromise — and I know that has to sound really familiar to Americans today. And finally, what happens when all this plays out, people will start questioning the rules of the game.”

Siavelis sees this scenario playing out around the globe today in countries like Poland, Hungary and Brazil. He says historically speaking once democratic institutions have been undermined and laws governing elections are called into question, that game becomes dangerous. 

The 2022 general election is Tuesday, November 8, with polling places open from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Any voter in line at their assigned polling location at 7:30 p.m. will be allowed to vote.