Lawmakers Seek Election Integrity

U.S. Senator Josh Hawley has introduced a bill to ban ballot harvesting in federal elections. The measure, according to the Missouri Republican, is designed to protect election integrity in response to disputes during the 2020 presidential election. The legislation seeks to improve the ability of campaigns to observe vote counting operations, require mail-in or absentee ballots to be counted and recorded immediately, and require that ballot counting, once begun, continue until completed.

Hawley stressed that “The debacle of the 2020 election has made clear that serious reforms are needed to protect the integrity of our elections. The American people deserve transparency—that means banning ballot harvesting, empowering poll watchers, and taking steps to ensure that all legally cast ballots are accounted for. The confusion and controversy of [the 2020 election] is not acceptable, Congress must take action to Ban ballot harvesting in federal elections and incentivize states to do the same.”

Specifically, the measure would: require that at least two representatives of each campaign be permitted to observe polls and vote counting operations; require mail-in or absentee ballots to be counted and recorded immediately upon receipt, with no results to be disclosed until after the closure of polling places on the date of an election; require that ballot counting, once begun, continue until completed—no delays or pauses except in the event of imminent emergency; require states to maintain round-the-clock video surveillance monitoring of absentee ballot drop boxes, with unedited footage to be made available upon request to members of the public at no charge; and impose requirements, adapted from existing Florida law, that mandate the auditing of voting systems and the reporting in advance of preparations made for upcoming general elections.

A companion bill has been introduced in the House by Rep. Mike Kelly, a Pennsylvania Republican. Kelly described the need for his measure, H.R. 8753, designated as the Protect Election Integrity Act of 2020: “As our nation waits patiently for the official results of the 2020 presidential election, one thing has become abundantly clear: the administration of the election in several states has caused millions of Americans to lose faith in our electoral system,” said Kelly. “The Protect Election Integrity Act of 2020 will help restore their trust, which is essential to the health of our republic.”

Trump campaign attorneys have filed more than 20 legal challenges in several states, in addition to demanding recounts in other jurisdictions. U.S. Attorney General William Barr has authorized federal prosecutors to probe alleged irregularities.

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Due to the serious irregularities in the 2020 campaign, U.S. Attorney General Bill Barr has authorized the United States Department of Justice to review the serious allegations. In a letter to senior DOJ staff, Barr stated: “Now that the voting has concluded, it is imperative that the American people can trust that our elections were conducted in such a way that the outcomes accurately reflect the will of the voters. Although the States have the primary responsibility to conduct and supervise elections under our Constitution and the laws enacted by Congress, the United States Department of Justice has an obligation to ensure that federal elections are conducted in such a way that the American people can have full confidence in their electoral process and their government.”

The twin bills reflect widespread unease over a number of challenges to electoral integrity by both Republicans and independent analysts.

The Gatestone Institute has concentrated on problems with the balloting software used in many state. Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani, cited by Gatestone, emphasizes that the software that was widely used was developed by a company called Smartmatic, a company that was founded by Hugo Chávez, and by his two allies who still own it. “It’s been used to cheat in elections in South America. It was banned by the United States about a decade ago. It’s come back now as a subcontractor to other companies to sort of hide in the weeds… Finally, if you want to get down to the votes, let’s pick Pennsylvania. We have identified 632,000 illegal votes. It’s enough to have the president win the state by 300,000, which is actually what he won it by, if you get that Smartmatic machine out.”

Illustration: Hugo Chavez, whose software was used in some states in the 2020 U.S. Presidential election (pixabay)

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Ukraine’s Frozen Conflict

As we approach winter in the northern hemisphere, the war in Ukraine is beginning to resemble a “frozen conflict” from many perspectives. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky recently told the media he hopes the war will end faster once President-elect Trump takes over in January. Opinions in Moscow, however, differ from that of the Ukrainian leader. Russian President Vladimir Putin argues that the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) needs to exclude Ukraine from joining in “exchange” for peace. If it does not, he says, then no end to the war is in sight. So far there is no Christmas solution. Several NATO countries, according to Vladimir Socor of the Jamestown Foundation, are tentatively considering “coalitions-of-the-willing” to provide security for Ukraine outside of the formal NATO framework. There is, however, no collective mechanism today under which such an arrangement is viable. According to the NATO Charter, while Ukraine is a NATO partner country, it may not join as a full member since it has not fulfilled the requirements for membership. That has not stopped NATO and allies from continuing “to provide Ukraine with unprecedented levels of support, helping to uphold its fundamental right to self-defence,” according to the organization. Socor says that keeping Ukraine out of NATO will not advance peace with Russia. Waiting for a peace settlement, he suggests, would only serve to encourage Moscow to continue the war indefinitely. Although the Biden Administration officially withdrew its support for Ukrainian membership in 2021, NATO maintains an “open door” policy toward membership-seeking countries. The current White House position led the way for European states to oppose Ukraine’s membership saying that a decision should be delayed until “conditions are met.” Biden pushed for changing “open door” to a “bridge” metaphor. It is not intended as an across-the-board NATO policy and has been implemented in the past on a case-by-case basis, says Socor. “The alliance’s open-door policy was not fully insulated from Russia’s non-statutory blocking power, and NATO-aspirant countries’ path toward membership was not always irreversible.” Russia has successfully blocked states like Georgia from joining, first in 2008 and again after the war in Ukraine began in 2014. Russia recognizes the value add of Ukraine to NATO is enormous and that Kyiv has a better case than some other nations. Putin’s invasion was, in part, intended to foreclose that option. By 2021, Moscow was pushing hard to maximize its war objectives, which included further annexations of Ukrainian territory. A main goal for Putin was, and is, to ensure there is no Ukraine left to join NATO. As President-elect Trump prepares to assume office in January, he is faced with the historical challenges presented by the war. Post-conflict security guarantees were the center of several proposals made during the 2023 military stalemate. The incoming Trump Administration has yet to outline how it intends to handle the Russia-Ukraine war. Analysts in Washington believe that the new Administration will expect its European allies to guarantee the majority of Ukraine’s security needs. As we approach 2025, several European nations have acknowledged that they do not view Ukraine as eligible for NATO membership as it would draw the organization into the middle of the conflict. Others want to wait until the war is over or pending a “peace” settlement before considering Ukrainian membership. Socor reports that some “influential voices” are suggesting that “Kyiv should join NATO after “freezing” the war along a stable armistice line, de facto accepting Ukraine’s partition, with NATO security guarantees applying de jure to the government-controlled territory only.” This would mean starting accession talks soon with the actual talks to commence only after a ceasefire is in place. Trump arrives in Washington at a time when Putin’s hybrid strategies of war in Ukraine have eviscerated commonly-held differences between war and peace. “Absent a political consensus in NATO over Ukrainian membership, certain European allies, including France’s President Emmanuel Macron, are holding informal consultations about post-conflict security guarantees to Kyiv by NATO members outside of NATO’s framework,” according to the Jamestown Foundation. The Biden Administration downplayed the discussions on possible forms of military assistance and defense industry cooperation by sending only an Assistant Secretary of State. For a European peace to hold the Trump Administration would need to formally extend the United States’ nuclear deterrence to Ukraine. Options under discussion in Europe include a “coalition of the resolute” to deploy forces to Ukraine as part of a possible armistice package, deterring further Russian attacks, says Secor. European officials are also debating, without any agreement, whether its military forces could perform non-combat logistical roles to free Ukrainian forces to fight. None of the possible courses of action has moved forward as all eyes are waiting on the incoming Trump Administration for clues about its intended level of support for a NATO framework and other non-NATO proposals. Daria Novak served in the U.S. State Dept.