I Want to Be Able to Vote Again

The love of a sycophant is a love best approached with wariness. In July 2024, former President Donald Trump expressed his love to an audience of his admiring disciples. 

“I love you. You got to get out and vote. In four years, you don’t have to vote again. We’ll have it fixed so good, you’re not going to have to vote.” This statement was met with fierce applause, and now, only weeks away from the election, Donald Trump has stood by this promise. That promise is a threat, and it is one that Trump will make good on. 

Spawning alongside the insurrection in 2021, “Stop the Steal” discourse has become increasingly insidious in United States politics. From pockets of social media to congressional committees, the narrative that the 2020 election was stolen from the hands of Donald Trump by conniving leftists is accepted as a fundamental reality — despite all evidence pointing to the contrary. 

This rhetoric has galvanized the alt-right movement in the United States to new heights, with the Republican Party as a whole transforming from its historical position to that of a thinly veiled fascist movement. We need to vote. 

I want to establish that I have no lost love for Vice President Harris. I do not believe that she is a good candidate, nor do I believe her policies represent the bastion of the progressive movement. I have also heard the argument that voting for Harris sends a message to the Democratic Party — the message that we as voters will always vote blue so long as they remain the lesser of two evils. I disagree with this argument, and with several arguments that are associated with it.

Some members of Swarthmore argue that the leftist movement is growing; some express regret that a viable third-party candidate was not endorsed soon enough. They argue that now is the moment to make their presence known and to ensure that the Democratic Party never again walks over leftists to appease the right. Believe me when I say now is not that time. 

First, while the progressive movement may be growing, the alt-right movement is also swelling to meet it. I am from Nevada, an intensely purple state, and I have witnessed rallies, marches, and community members ardently endorsing a fascist ideology. I have witnessed community members express their desire to lynch and desecrate communities of color, seen confederate flags and swastikas burnt into the streets, and been on the receiving end of anti-LGBTQ and Christian nationalist campaigns. If this is what purple looks like, I cannot fathom what a red locale is capable of. 

Second, this election is not a standard election. If Donald Trump is returned to power, it will not be relinquished again. The Supreme Court has been shaped by the last Trump administration, which has issued a series of rulings that give the executive office tangible power to disenfranchise and puppeteer all future elections, not to mention implement policies that will actively harm social progress across the United States. Abstaining from this election may send a message to the Democratic Party, although I am not convinced it will. What is certain, however, is that it will damn the future of any progressive movements in the United States and will usher in fascist ideologies to power for generations to come.

In the upcoming election, we are voting to preserve our ability to fight for change and to combat the platforming of an explicitly alt-right state. It doesn’t end there, though. We deserve better. In the next four years, we should continue working to dismantle the two-party system. Connecting with universities and campuses across the United States, we can push for open primaries and ranked-choice voting, allowing third-party candidates a window of opportunity. We can fight for progressive candidates and platforms, and succeed on a broader scale. I am excited for that work.

However, for that work to succeed, we must preserve this democracy, as disjointed as it is. Voting for Harris is the only viable option for this preservation. If Donald Trump is elected, he may appoint two more Supreme Court Justices for life tenure, ensuring a conservative court for a substantial portion of the next century. If Donald Trump wins, the Democratic Party will not have a prayer — regardless of the message you send to them now — of enacting any semblance of change. If Donald Trump wins, BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, undocumented students, and communities across the United States will be decimated. If Donald Trump wins, corporate entities will see the last of their guardrails stripped.

So, if you are able, please consider voting. I want to be able to vote again.